Indiana family sues police alleging excessive force

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An Indiana family is suing Hammond police officers, alleging they used excessive force during a September 24 traffic stop for an unworn seatbelt.

The traffic stop ended with cops shattering a car window of the vehicle and using a taser on one passenger.

The routine stop happened while the family was on their way to visit the driver’s mother at John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County and was all caught on video by a 14-year-old, Joseph Ivy, who was a passenger in the back seat, reports NBC Chicago.

Lisa Mahone was driving, and her boyfriend, Jamal Jones, was riding in the front seat.

Mahone said in a complaint obtained by NBC she became fearful when officers Patrick Vicari and Charles Turner laid spike strips in front of their car and drew their weapons.

Following a conversation and exchange of information, Jones was ordered to get out of the car. According to the lawsuit, he did not get out of the vehicle because he feared for his life.

At that time, Mahone shifted the car into gear, and it began to move forward as officers warned there was a “stop strip” placed in front of the car, reports The Chicago Tribune.

“I am scared for my life,” Mahone tells a dispatcher after dialing 911. “He just pulled a gun on us, and we don’t have a gun.”

Hammond Police Lt. Richard Hoyda said in a statement that officers are allowed to “request that [passengers] exit a stopped vehicle for the officer’s safety without a requirement of reasonable suspicion.”

“The Hammond Police officers were at all times acting in the interest of officer safety and in accordance with Indiana law,” Hoyda said.

Police used a tool to break the car window. The lawsuit alleges the broken glass injured Ivy and his younger sister, Janiya Ivy, who was also seated in the back.

Officers also used a taser on Jones and arrested him. He was reportedly booked on the charge of resisting arrest.

The lawsuit alleges excessive force as well as false arrest and battery.

Follow theGrio.com’s Carrie Healey on Twitter @CarrieHeals.