Maryland Accident Law Blog
Baltimore Officer Jerome K. Hill has been named as the defendant in a $100 million police brutality lawsuit. The lawsuit, filed in Baltimore Circuit Court in Maryland, alleges that Hill assaulted Rosedale resident Steven Vernarelli on October 22 near Monument and Curley Streets. According to the lawsuit, two other police officers saw the alleged assault but didn’t try to stop it.
Last week, in an unrelated incident, Hill was charged for assaulting an undercover internal affairs detective. The undercover officer was part of a sting operation targeting Hill. The detective had stood on Clinton and Noble streets pretending to be a drug buyer. A dispatcher told Hill to go there. Hill then allegedly got out of his car and punched the undercover detective without provocation. He is charged with second-degree assault and was suspended without pay. He is free on $25,000 bond.
Police Brutality
Police officers are not supposed to use excessive violence when questioning, arresting, or apprehending a suspect. Many incidents of police brutality go unreported. Some people may be too scared to report what happened while others might wonder whether the police officer was just doing his or her job.
You are entitled to the protection of your legal or civil rights even if you have been arrested or charged with a crime. You also are entitled to file a police brutality lawsuit for damages if you have been injured or someone you love has died because of excessive and unwarranted violence by a police officer.
Common forms of police brutality include sexual assault, physical assault, racial profiling, harassment, shootings, and beatings. Injuries to a victim can be serious and can sometimes result in death.
Police officers are supposed to uphold and enforce the law, not violate the law or the rights of citizens, immigrants, or tourists. When a law enforcement exerts excessive and unnecessary force when dealing with anyone, he or she can be held liable for personal injury damages.
Our Maryland and Washington D.C. injury law firm is dedicated to helping injured persons recover compensation for the harm that they have suffered by a negligent party.
$100 million lawsuit filed over police brutality claim, BaltimoreSun.com, January 30, 2008
Related Web Resource:
Police Brutality and Accountability in the U.S., HRW.org
§ 1983. Civil action for deprivation of rights, Cornell University Law School
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