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Black motorist says Rockford police falsely arrested him in traffic stop - MLive.com

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KENT COUNTY, MI – A Black motorist has filed a federal lawsuit against Rockford police after a traffic stop resulted in what he calls a false arrest for felony resisting and obstructing police.

Police stopped Thurman King, 55, for allegedly failing to stop at a four-way stop near his Rockford home and having a license-plate light out.

He drove a short distance to his home and pulled into his driveway.

“If there was not video of him stopping at the stop sign, he might have taken a plea or (taken) his chances with a jury,” Grand Rapids attorney Stephen Drew told MLive/The Grand Rapids Press.

Kent County prosecutors ultimately dismissed the felony charge and two misdemeanors. Drew said he thinks prosecutor dismissed charges after reviewing the March 20, 2019, incident on in-dash video from a patrol car.

Prosecutor Chris Becker said his office dismissed charges “in the interest of justice” but did not provide further details.

The City of Rockford, the Department of Public Safety and two officers have until May 5 to respond to the lawsuit, filed last month in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids.

The city disputed the allegations.

“While we do not intend to try this case in the court of public opinion, we disagree strongly with the claims as presented here,” spokesperson Mary Ann Sabo said in a statement.

“We intend to present a vigorous defense in this matter.”

The incident happened around 11 p.m. when King was driving home from work. He was driving north on River Street when he stopped for a stop sign at Bridge Street, the lawsuit said.

Officer Zachary Abbate soon activated his police lights.

King, who was uncertain why the officer was trying to pull him over, drove a short distance then pulled into his driveway, his attorney said. The officer said he didn’t come to a complete stop at the four-way and had an inoperable license-plate light.

“Recalling that he had made a full stop, (King) became fearful of the officer’s intent and what was going to transpire because Defendant Abbate was being untruthful about (King’s) driving behavior,” Drew wrote in the lawsuit.

Drew said the dash camera showed his client had come to a complete stop. The video did not show an inoperable license-plate light but he believed that it was working.

He said that the city tolerated or authorized traffic stops “based on racial profiling.”

His client was concerned about being pulled over because of high-profile confrontations involving Black people and police in places across the country, he said.

King, who got out of his vehicle, began yelling for his fiancée to come outside. The video showed the officer tell King to show his hands, which he did. Abbate told him he “reeked of weed.”

When Officer Jason Bradley showed up, King “became even more fearful” and kept calling for his fiancée, his attorney wrote.

In the video, King could be heard hollering. The confrontation took place outside of camera view.

Drew said the officers “grabbed” him “and swung him around, preventing him from yelling for his fiancée.”

King “was then thrown to the ground of his driveway” before he was arrested, the lawsuit said.

He was taken to the Kent County Correctional Facility where he was held 14 hours, the lawsuit said. Once released, he sought treatment for a head injury, left elbow sprain, an abrasion and neck strain, the lawsuit said.

King was charged less than two months later with resisting or obstructing a police officer, operating while intoxicated and having an open container of alcohol in his vehicle. He waived his right to a preliminary examination in 63rd District Court and had his case bound over for trial in Kent County Circuit Court.

On July 2, 2019, prosecutors dropped all charges.

Drew said that the “unlawful stop” led to his client’s “false arrest” and incarceration.

The video showed that King and Abbate knew each other.

Abbate contended that King was uncooperative. He said at one point he probably wouldn’t have issued a citation if King had complied.

“I gave you more than enough chances,” he said.

King said: “Oh my God, man. I can’t believe this. I can’t believe this, man.”

When Abbate asked why he didn’t listen early in the encounter King said he was calling for his finance.

“I wanted a witness, man.”

As he sat in the patrol car, King requested an attorney. He refused a chemical test for alcohol or narcotics. He said he had smoked marijuana hours earlier but was not intoxicated.

King said he just wanted to get home.

“Why you being so hard on me, man?” he said, the video showed. “I don’t know what the problem is. I mean … beat me up.”

The officer said: “Ultimately, you shouldn’t have been fighting with me. That’s what it comes down to.”

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