One of the most difficult sacrifices police officers make, especially if they have families, must be working the graveyard shift or on holidays. Crime doesn't sleep or recognize national holidays.
So it's probably a good idea to show a little empathy for the folks in blue working their beats while you snooze or party 'til dawn.
But while cops working on Christmas Eve, for example, may be a little cranky, they don't need to go around body slamming people and breaking knee caps. That's what John Preston Jr. claims happened in the wee hours of Dec. 24 (Sun-Times), alleging excessive force and illegal seizure in his injury lawsuit against a Chicago Police officer alleging battery and assault.
He was leaving a Christmas party (where, it's important to note, alcohol was not served) around midnight at Major Hall on Grand Ave. when a fight unrelated to Preston or his party broke out. Police were called to the scene and in the ensuing chaos one officer allegedly mistook Preston for one of the fighters.
The suit claims an unidentified police officer approached him from behind, grabbed him around the neck, wrapped his foot around his ankle, slammed him against a parked car and said, "I told you to leave the scene" as Preston walked towards his vehicle.
First of all, Preston claims he was in the process of leaving the scene when the officer accosted him.
Then, as if being accosted while walking away isn't bad enough, as Preston fell to the ground, he broke his kneecap and tore a ligament.
Adding insult to injury, Preston alleges the police told him to get up (he couldn't, he was injured) and then left without calling an ambulance.
Eventually a security guard helped Preston back inside the hall and called for medical help.
In addition to the excessive force and illegal seizure claims, Preston is suing the officer for failure to intervene, failure to provide medical attention, intentional infliction of emotional distress, assault, battery and indemnity. He's seeking both compensatory and punitive damages.
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Chicago Police Abuse Cases Exceed Average (The New York Times)
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Police Misconduct: A Guide to Selected Goverment Information (Western Illinois University, Government Publications Library)
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Police Misconduct and Civil Rights (FindLaw)
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Chicago Injury Lawyers (FindLaw)
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