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Civil rights lawsuit accuses Long Beach police of excessive force against mentally ill Black man
Long Beach Oct 23, 2020
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A Black man who was beaten by a Long Beach police officer in February while being placed in custody has alleged in a lawsuit that officers used excessive force when they should have recognized he was in the midst of a mental health crisis, attorneys for the man announced Tuesday.
Eugene Martindale III, 25, was seeking help during a mental health episode on Feb. 15 when a 7-Eleven security guard used a stun gun on him and police arrived to violently arrest him, according to the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court, Central District of California on Tuesday.
A video captured by a witness during the incident shows an officer swinging a baton at Martindale’s legs as two other officers hold him down on the ground near Fourth Street and Atlantic Avenue.
In a statement released Tuesday, the Long Beach Police Department said the officers were responding to reports of a man who was “being disruptive at a local business and was climbing on vehicles and attempting to gain entry into both empty and occupied vehicles.”
Police said the February incident ended with Martindale arrested on suspicion of attempted carjacking, and that he was convicted of two counts of […]
