Increase in Police Brutality Lawsuits
Police brutality lawsuits, also known as excessive force lawsuits, are attracting the attention of many plaintiffs lawyers, according to a post in the National Law Journal . The article notes “more plaintiffs lawyers across the country are taking on cases of police brutality.” In bringing a police brutality lawsuit, our Nashville excessive force and police brutality lawyers are motivated by a sense of social justice and fairness for innocent victims whose civil rights have been violated.
Most police officers are loyal public servants committed to their duties to the public. It is still unfortunately the case that innocent people are sometimes the victims of unlawful police conduct. When these unfortunate situations arise, it is important to have the best legal representation available. Our Nashville civil rights lawyers have represented victims of excessive force and police brutality before. In our prior cases, and in the growing national trend of police brutality lawsuits, video evidence has proven hugely important.
Video Evidence is Crucial in Excessive Force Cases
As the National Law Journal notes: “Fueling much of the interest from the plaintiffs bar is the prevalence of videos—most often made from the cellphones of bystanders or cameras on police car dashboards—that have captured violent altercations with officers.” The sad case of the shooting of Walter Scott in North Charleston, SC, in which a police officer was charged with murder, stands as an important reminder of the crucial significance of video evidence. In that case, the officer’s narrative was completely contradicted by the cell-phone video of a citizen bystander.
Here in Nashville, mayoral candidates have declared their support for body cameras to be worn by metro police. It is likely that in the future there will be even more video evidence in potential Nashville police brutality cases. As these cases become more popularized and lucrative, you can expect that many lawyers will seek to expand their practices. But, as noted in the National Law Journal by Jonathan Moore, a partner at New York-based Beldock Levine & Hoffman, who represented Eric Garner’s family: “In many cases, lawyers who have a straight personal injury practice are incapable of representing plaintiffs in civil rights cases because they don’t understand the nuances of civil rights law,” Moore said. “It’s a complicated area that’s changing almost daily.”
I’ve Been Injured by Excessive Force, What Should I Do?
Our Nashville excessive force and excessive force lawyers and TN civil rights attorneys have the civil rights litigation experience and the track record to handle important police brutality cases. If you, or someone you know, has been the victim of police brutality in Tennessee, please submit your police brutality cases here.