HERCULES — A person who crashed his automotive after experiencing what he mentioned was his first seizure is suing the town of Hercules and at the least three law enforcement officials, claiming they bodily and verbally attacked him as an alternative of offering obligatory medical care.
On April 1, 2024, Jack Bruce, 22, was driving down Refugio Valley Highway after visiting his grandmother. In accordance with a lawsuit filed final week, it was throughout that drive that he had a seizure, which precipitated him to lose management of the automotive, veer off the highway and roll into an embankment, prompting witnesses to name emergency responders.
As soon as crews arrived on the scene, Bruce asserts that officers disregarded their coaching on how one can handle these experiencing seizures and as an alternative “forcefully extract(ed)” Bruce from his car.
“While the car accident caused no injuries, the first responders did,” learn the lawsuit filed Feb. 7 on Bruce’s behalf by Craig Peters with Altair Regulation and David Fiol with Brent & Fiol LLP.
Together with the town, the three officers named as defendants within the lawsuit are Angel Garcia, Michael Thompson and Joshua Goldstein. With the swimsuit, Bruce is searching for compensation for bodily ache and struggling, emotional misery, particular damages together with medical care, punitive damages and any legal professional prices.
The lawsuit asserts the officers have been knowledgeable that Bruce was experiencing a seizure and may have identified to not restrain him or understand agitated conduct as deliberate hostility or resistance, in accordance with Police Officer Requirements and Coaching steering.
The officers are accused of dragging Bruce from his automotive by his limbs and hair, punching him within the face twice and utilizing a Taser on him a number of occasions, in keeping with the lawsuit.
They’re additionally accused of falsely claiming that Bruce was excessive on medication, violating division coverage by both muting or failing to activate their body-worn cameras, and submitting “falsehood-ridden reports” to the Contra Costa County District Lawyer’s Workplace.
An April 1 Watch Commander’s Shift Report briefly detailed the incident underneath the label “Resisting Arrest/ Possible Drug DUI.” The log asserts officers responded to Refugio Valley Highway and Nation Run at about 1:05 p.m. and located a 21-year-old male driver who they believed was both impaired or experiencing a medical emergency.
In accordance with the log, the motive force actively resisted makes an attempt by officers to guage him and hit and kicked officers. A warrant to acquire and take a look at the motive force’s blood was granted after the motive force was transported by ambulance to the Contra Costa County Regional Medical Middle.
A take a look at of Bruce’s blood and urine confirmed “trace amounts of THC” in his system and a sedative that was administered after the incident, the lawsuit mentioned. He’s since skilled further seizures and has been identified with epilepsy.
The lawsuit additionally asserts that Bruce feared he’d face legal expenses after studying of what was said within the police reviews.
The Hercules Police Division and the town issued an announcement Feb. 7, noting its coverage to not touch upon energetic litigation.
“The City takes any allegation of excessive use of force seriously and is committed to following standard protocol in response to such allegations,” learn the joint assertion.
Hercules Councilmember Alexander Walker-Griffin shared his assist for Bruce and his household in a Fb publish Feb. 7, wishing Bruce nicely in his restoration and for the officers concerned within the incident to “heal and learn from this event.”
“The event was heartbreaking and devastating to watch. It’s also disappointing,” Walker-Griffin mentioned. “I do applaud the individuals that put on their plate carriers everyday [sic] and go out and protect and serve the different communities around this country. However, events such as this should not have taken place.”
The Bruce household had reached out to Walker-Griffin months in the past to debate the incident, the councilmember mentioned within the publish. Throughout that dialogue, Walker-Griffin mentioned the household expressed an curiosity in seeing the division bear further coaching.
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