Insane body camera video released this week shows the arrest of an intoxicated man who fought back against a police K9, up to and including biting the dog back.
The post WATCH: Man Charged With Assaulting an Officer for Biting a Police K9 as It Tried to Bite Him appeared first on The Free Thought Project.
A Jersey cop has been charged after horrifying dashcam footage showed him sic his K9 on an elderly woman and allow it to maul her for no reason at all.
A little girl is heartbroken after a police K9 mauled their beloved ten-pound Cavapoo and the deputy held her in the car for on hour as she died.
Newark, OH – The video footage is gruesome, and the photos of the resulting injuries are horrific—a former teacher has now filed a federal lawsuit against the City of Newark and the police officer who unleashed an attack dog on her, and she is claiming she was not breaking any laws, and posed no threat to police at the time.
Ashley Zuress, 31, was the passenger in a vehicle that was pulled over for a traffic violation in March 2016. When the driver, her boyfriend Jeffrey Grooms, got out of the vehicle and fled the scene, she said police said nothing to her about staying where she was. Because she was not the one responsible for the violation, she climbed into the driver’s seat and began to drive away.
According to the lawsuit, as reported by the Newark Advocate, after Zuress left the scene, she was pulled over by police who told her to get out of the car and walk backwards to them. While it is not clear what Grooms’ status was, or if he had been apprehended by police, Officers Dave Burris and April Fleming appear to be the ones involved in the original traffic stop, who then went after Zuress.
Advertisment
“Ms. Zuress turned to face away from (Officer) who then ordered her to walk backwards toward him,” the lawsuit stated. “Ms. Zuress did not immediately walk towards (Officer), rather she twisted her body around, asked why she was being pulled over and stated that she wanted to go home.”
The officers claimed Zuress was not complying, and they responded by bringing a K9 officer to her car and letting the dog bite her arm repeatedly, as she was taken to the ground. While the officers’ dash cam does not appear to have captured the entire scene on video, it did capture the audio of Zuress’ reaction as she was mauled by the attack dog.
READ MORE: Americans Have No "Independence" to Celebrate -- What July 4th Has Become in a Police State
“Approximately one second after (Officer) threatened Ms. Zuress with use of the ‘dog,’ Defendant Burris moved from his position behind Ike to Ms. Zuress’ Jeep,” the lawsuit said. “From that vantage point, Defendant Burris could clearly see that Ms. Zuress was unarmed and making no threatening moves.”
As a result of the arrest, Zuress was charged with two crimes—misdemeanor counts of obstructing official business and failure to comply. The Newark Advocate reported that she pled guilty to both counts, by way of a plea deal, and she was sentenced to a suspended 30-day jail sentence. But that pales in comparison to the physical damage Zuress suffered.
The lawsuit alleged that the officers used excessive force by taking Zuress “forcibly and painfully to the ground where [the attack dog] continued to bite Ms. Zuress’ arm while Defendant Burris and other officers forcefully placed [her] in handcuffs.”
Zuress required medical attention after the arrest, and she was treated for deep cuts that resulted in more than a dozen staples. She now suffers from permanent nerve damage, scaring, and limited mobility.
“I felt like from that video, everything in my life was over. I have an ugly scar on my arm that can’t go away. It can’t be fixed,” Zuress told the local ABC affiliate, noting that she also lost her job as a teacher at a Columbus charter school after the incident.
As The Free Thought Project has reported, police officers have a habit of releasing their K9 officers on suspects who clearly pose no threat of violence to the officers. In one recent account, a man was mauled by an attack dog while surrendering, after he was approached by police over an alleged parole violation. Even after video footage was released that showed the man on his knees, with his hands behind his head when police released the attack dog, the man was only awarded $17,000—all of which was paid for by taxpayers.
READ MORE: Road Raging ATF Agent Pulls Gun On Motorist
Watch the Dash Cam footage below:
San Francisco, CA — While rescuing his neighbor’s cat from a construction area, retired sound engineer, Richard May, 64, was attacked, brought to the ground, viciously mauled by a k9, and then arrested by a sadistic officer who would photograph his kill. May is in court this week attempting to seek justice for that horrific evening involving a deputy and his dog with the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Department.
On the night of January 1, 2015, May was conducting, what he thought to be, a good deed. He was helping his 73-year-old neighbor, Sharon Coster, rescue her cat, Domino who’d climbed up construction scaffolding on an unfinished building next door.
As May was climbing up the scaffolding to retrieve the black and white cat, he recalls the K9 biting into his right leg. During this week’s trial, May recalled to the eight-member jury that the bite was “extremely painful.”
After the initial bite, May was brought to the ground by the large dog who continued to maul him.
“I was scratching and screaming. I was trying to escape in my mind. I couldn’t believe what was going on,” May recalled.
Riggs, the mauling K9, belonged to Sheriff’s Deputy Chris Laughlin who, along with two other deputies, were responding to a call about an alleged burglary seen on surveillance video at the construction site.
Both Laughlin and the county maintain they gave ample warning for May to respond to their commands before unleashing the deadly dog on the elderly man. Police claim the innocent, retired, elderly man — rescuing his neighbor’s cat — hid out in the shadows and refused to emerge and show his hands.
READ MORE: Cops Burn Man"s Genitals with Taser in Front of His Family
The county claims the deputy’s actions were reasonable as he feared for his life and thought May could’ve had a weapon.
As KTVU reports:
May contends he posed no threat and didn’t hear any announcement from Laughlin until after Riggs started biting.
His lawsuit is based on claims of unconstitutional use of excessive force, as well as negligence, assault and false arrest under California law. It seeks compensation from the county and the deputy for May’s costs and emotional distress as well as a punitive award from Laughlin.
May testified today that he did “absolutely not” hear Laughlin’s alleged initial command to show his hands and drop to the ground.
He said he saw the dark silhouettes of the deputies about 100 yards away, assumed they were security officers and stood still to await them.
“I stayed right where I was because I was expecting a conversation,” May said. According to May, the only sound he heard was a “very loud guttural sound which I interpreted as an attack word,” he recalled.
“The dog immediately at full speed was running my way,” and began biting his leg, May said. May said he was told to get on the ground and even after he immediately complied, the dog continued to bite him.
After the dog mauled the innocent May, he was handcuffed and brought to the sheriff’s office — before the hospital. He was berated with questions until it was determined that he was rescuing a cat and not robbing the place.
This is where the story takes an even more ominous turn.
READ MORE: Since 9/11 the Citizen"s Freedom has been Shredded, While Cops Get this Special "Bill of Rights"
After realizing they had just allowed their K9 to maul an innocent man, the cops were not only unapologetic, but Laughlin celebrated the attack and even made a trophy out of their victim.
Laughlin took May to the hospital where he tagged his prey with a sticker on May’s shirt that said, “I met Riggs,” before snapping a photo for his personal collection.
He then dropped two tickets in May’s lap. They were notices to appear in court for the alleged misdemeanors of trespassing and resisting arrest.
Luckily for May, both of those charges were thrown out by the District Attorney who clearly had no evidence of any crimes.
The civil rights trial is currently underway in the Federal Building courtroom of U.S. Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler. Hopefully, the jury sees the sadistic nature of deputy Laughlin and awards May accordingly.
As for Laughlin, however, he’s still a cop, and likely still tagging his victims for photos in his trophy book.
