My only regret is dropping so many F bombs but that was only after his initial assault that sort of ticked me off. This is the first draft of claims in a lawsuit against DHS/ FPS I will be filing- feedback ,much appreciated. I've been through the SF-95 tort claim process that resulted in nothing more than failure by DHS
The relevant video........ http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/54964729
If the first link doesn't work try this one.......
I suggest you watch the video then read the claims
Attachment ‘A’ - Claims
Text for ‘Statement of Claim’ on DHS filing
Claims are numbered and in parenthesis
On 5 November 2014 (just after noon- 12pm) the plaintiff was peacefully participating in an anti- corruption demonstration. While participating in the demonstration on Constitution Ave (Washington DC) near the intersection of Constitution and 14th, witnessed what appeared to him to be a felony hit and run where a woman in a white Mercedes Benz had broken through /avoided police barriers and intentionally struck a female demonstrator- plaintiff was an eyewitness to this event only several feet away from where it occurred.
The plaintiff witnessed the driver of the Mercedes, after the hit and run incident, turn onto 14th street from Constitution heading North on 14st. The plaintiff jogged to that intersection and offered his business card, as a witness to the crime, to two DCMPD officers standing in the street- those officers directed the plaintiff (video evidence available) to FPS Nathan Tillman who had apparently flagged over the Mercedes- Tillman was standing in the middle of 14th street and on his telephone or radio at the time the plaintiff walked up to him with his arm extended offering his business card. Tillman threw the plaintiffs business card down onto the street and immediately turned his attention to a can of OC spray the defendant had in the front pocket of his vest- Tillman immediately demanded, several times, that the plaintiff surrender his OC spray canister. The plaintiff refused and placed his hand over the top of the OC canister to prevent Tillman from grabbing the canister from it's vest pocket. {b}(1- assault and battery)[/b] Tillman then used his forearm to push the plaintiff out of the street and up against a large concrete planter/barrier on the sidewalk. Tillman continued to demand that the plaintiff surrender the OC spray as the plaintiff kept his hand over the top of the spray continuing to prevent Tillman from seizing it while also insisting verbally to Tillman that the spray was 100% legal to posses (2- Attempted Petty Larceny). The plaintiff had also been carrying a demonstration flag with a 4-6' long 1/4" x 1 1/2' wooden pole- when Tillman, using his forearm and body, backed the plaintiff up to the concrete planter he also demanded that the plaintiff drop 'drop his flag'- initially the plaintiff refused to drop the flag but then placed the flag atop the planter behind him. (3- First Amendment Violation) In fact the entire series of assaults and wrongful arrest of the plaintiff prevented him from continuing participation in a demonstration he had planned on attending weeks in advance thereby again clearly violating his First Amendment rights.
The plaintiff explained to Tillman that he and several of his demonstrating associates had received specific threats on social media from a 'red mask' faction that threatened the use of firearms against the plaintiff and his associates on the day of the demonstration. The plaintiff presented printed copies for the threats from his backpack and gave them to Tillman- Tillman disengaged from physical force and then briefly examined the documents. Tillman was also informed by the plaintiff that the plaintiff had sent several emails and telephone messages to the DCMPD, several days in advance of the demonstration, to make them aware that these online death threats had been made. It turns out that DCMPD had taken the threats seriously and deployed a unit to keep a watch over at least one of my associates- Christine Anne Sands- who had been the primary target of the death threats. (4-Denied the SELF EVIDENT right to lawfully defend oneself)
Tillman and another unidentified FPS officer continued to attempt to take possession of plaintiff's OC spray while essentially corralling him- back up against the concrete planter- plaintiff then turns around and walks to the other side of the planters and walks away back towards Constitution Ave due to fear of escalation of violence by FPS officers as well as fear of his lawful property being wrongfully confiscated. The plaintiff walked approximately 100 feet and then realized he didn't have his backpack. The plaintiff turned around to go back and collect his backpack which was now on the hood of the FPS SUV. As plaintiff approached the SUV Tillman's back was to the plaintiff and the SUV- Tillman was apparently alerted to the plaintiff's return due to people saying 'grab your backpack'- The plaintiff reached for and grabbed his backpack first and pulled backwards, up towards the curb onto the sidewalk to head back down the sidewalk and away from the incident- Tillman, alerted by the ‘grab the backpack’ folks, grabbed the other strap on the backpack and pulled the plaintiff towards him and off of the curb sidewalk towards him- the plaintiff’s left hand, while falling forward on the curb touched Tillman’s shoulder palm open- this was later stated in Tillman’s reports to be the act that warranted the ‘assaulting a police officer’ charge- a charge often used in the DC as a catch all for LEOs due to poorly written law- an American University study supports this claim of gross abuse of this charge in DC.
The backpack then fell to the ground- Tillman then stepped into the road and drew his taser (5- Unlawful Assault And Battery With a Potentially Deadly Weapon) from it's holster and pointed it at the plaintiff standing 6-10' in front of him on the sidewalk. The plaintiff asserts that his property, the backpack, was unlawfully confiscated- he simply wanted to collect his property and return to peacefully demonstrating. He wanted no further dealings with Tillman and it appeared as if prior to his return for the backpack Tillman had no interest in pursuing the plaintiff for arrest.
The plaintiff then raised his hands in the air and feared being electrocuted by Tillman. Under fear of electrocution the plaintiff decided to surrender the pepper spray as Tillman had demanded no less than 6 times prior. The plaintiff reached down to remove the spray and throw it to the ground when Tillman then fired his taser into the plaintiff's right leg and electrocuted him with approximately 500,000 volts- the stunned plaintiff fell to the concrete sidewalk like fell tree, his head narrowly avoiding the edge of a concrete planter behind him- the plaintiff recalls having great concern that he would hit his head as he was falling backwards, standing erect, paralyzed from the electrocution.
The plaintiff quickly recovered from the electrocution and moments later then voluntarily approached Tillman and an unnamed DCMPD uniformed officer with hands in the air- obeying their commands for fear of escalating violence from the officers- Tillman in particular- Tillman then proceeded to handcuff the plaintiff - ratcheting the cuffs extremely tightly around the plaintiff's wrists- shortly thereafter the plaintiff is seen on video complaining about how tight the handcuffs were on his wrist and were cutting off his circulation.
While the plaintiff was handcuffed with hands behind back Tillman did a hand sweep of plaintiff right upper leg- front thigh- this resulted in improperly tearing out the taser prongs which should have been removed by an EMT not Tillman’s sweeping hand.
After being in FPS custody for 5-10 minutes the plaintiff was being held by the cuffs from behind from an unidentified FPS officer who may have been the commander on the scene and had an oak lead insignia similar to that of a Lt. Colonel in the US Army. The plaintiff was verbally protesting the arrest and police conduct at the scene but offering no physical resistance and was still handcuffed with hands behind the back when the Lt. Col pressed the top if the plaintiffs left hand upwards, bending at the wrist and causing excruciating pain to the plaintiff- the plaintiff then yells out describing the submission maneuver the officer was assaulting him with to the people observing the scene. This scene was captured in video that will be made available. (6- Assault and Battery While Restrained & 7- Unlawful/Wrongful Arrest & 8- Cruel And Unusual Punishment)
The plaintiff was then placed in a FPS SUV and taken to the Ronald Reagan building for 'processing'. The plaintiff was taken into an office area inside the Ronald Reagan Building that was presumably a FPS office. The plaintiff sat at a table next to Tillman and another officer while the two FPS officers carried on a conversation wth what the plaintiff perceived as a legal counselor- the plaintiff determined that the conversation- which went on for at least 30-60 minutes, was to determine what, if anything, the plaintiff could be charged with. The plaintiff believes it was during this conversation that Tillman learned or was reminded of the fact that OC spray is indeed legal to posses in the District of Columbia yer chose to charge the plaintiff never-the-less in a preemptive legal maneuver anticipating a wrongful arrest/ excessive force case AKA CYA. The plaintiff was then charged with illegal possession of OC/pepper spray and assaulting a police officer- misdemeanor. While seated in the FPS office the plaintiff saw the Lt. Col who had performed the hand submission move and asked several times that he be Identified with name and badge number- the FPS refused to give the plaintiff that information and asserted that all of that information would be in the paperwork he would receive later- such paperwork identifying that officer, who along with Tillman assaulted the plaintiff, was never given to the plaintiff by the FPS or any other LEO or District Court official.
The plaintiff was then taken to the DC overnight lockup- DC jail officials would not allow the plaintiff into the lockup area until the FPS took the plaintiff to GW hospital due to an existing wound the plaintiff had on his hand that he had suffered from a car repair several days prior- the plaintiff insisted that he did not want medical treatment and did not want to be taken to the emergency room and that is was unnecessary for this minor injury sustained days prior. Against the plaintiff's wishes the FPS then transported the plaintiff to GW Hospital emergency room where the plaintiff continued to refuse treatment- FPS refused to leave until plaintiff received treatment for this minor wound- finally FPS agreed to transport the plaintiff back to DC lock up after the doctor came out to the waiting area near the door and acknowledged that the wound was not significant/serious and that I was justified in refusing treatment. Even though the plaintiff never set foot in the actual ER itself he was still billed by GW hospital over $250 for the visit to waiting room near the ambulance entrance. (9- Financial Losses)
Plaintiff was then taken back to DC lock up where he was processed and placed in a small cell with another demonstrator that had been arrested that day. The temperature in the holding cell was well above 90 degrees Fahrenheit most likely closer to 100 or even above 100 F- all the while a hot bright spotlight beaming down onto stainless steel bunk beds with hot air continuously blowing down upon us all night long making more than an hour’s sleep in a stretch virtually impossible. The plaintiff, his cell mate, and other inmates were all sweating profusely, complaining of the intense heat, and continually asking the guards for fresh water. According to the plaintiff there was a water faucet and toilet in the cell but the water smelled as if it was unsafe to drink and tasted tainted therefore inmates, in this sweltering heated cage- were forced to plead with the guards to bring fresh, drinkable water, which they did from time to time but by no means did so often enough or with enough quantity per trip to come anywhere close to the healthy needs of people enduring such heat. The plaintiff asserts that the incarceration conditions the FPS had subjected him to as a result of their unlawful/ wrongful arrests , did without question constitute (8-cruel and unusual punishment). Rumor had it that this was ‘payback’ for a ‘prisoner’ who had dared to complain that i was too cold during their stay and we were made to pay for that.
The plaintiff was released from custody the following day, 6 July, 2014 at approximately 4:30 pm- this constituted over 24 hours of incarceration- at least 10 hours of that being under cruel an unusual conditions, sweltering heat, and lack of access to clean water. The charges filed by FPS Agent Tillman, against the plaintiff, were eventually dismissed but only after several trips to court accompanied by my attorney. The plaintiff suffered significant mental anguish that over the course of several months caused many sleepless nights for the plaintiff and the stress and suffering brought about when trying to function in day to day life while suffering anxiety related sleep deprivation and possibly PTSD from the electrocution incident and the legal consequences. The plaintiff also suffered financially as a result of this unlawful assault and arrest including missed time from his business as well as his attorney's fees and other expenses. .
The plaintiff also has concerns that his political beliefs, which were displayed via the Guy Fawkes mask atop his head (not covering his face) , his clothing, and his Gadsden flag, may have played a role in the aggressive manner in which he was treated by Tillman while innocently offering himself as a witness to what he believed was a good samaritan act as a witness to a felony offense. Deposition/ questioning of Tillman may very well help to clarify this claim but if it can be shown that Tillman indeed treated the plaintiff with bias due to his political beliefs and political symbolism he displayed this would constitute an infringement of the plaintiffs first amendment rights to free expression and to ‘peaceably gather & redress grievances’. (3- First Amendment Violation).
This is a pic of my electrocuter- Nathan Tillman- just before he pulled the trigger- check out the reaction of the motorcycle cop to the left- he's also wondering what exactly I did to deserve being electrocuted. Is it just me or does Tillman appear to have the look of pure sadistic satisfaction as he's pumping 500k volts into me?
I will be Pro Se on this case and I intend on winning...... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pro_se_legal_representation_in_the_United_States