Posted on 09/07/2010 4:45:08 PM PDT by The Magical Mischief Tour
A group of Melrose Park residents have filed a federal lawsuit against the village's police department alleging several village police officers used excessive force against them in February.
According to the lawsuit, on Feb. 20 five people, two of them teenagers, were allegedly beaten repeatedly and verbally assaulted. In addition, the lawsuit claims a Taser was repeatedly used on them by Melrose Park police officers.
Melrose Police officers' Dezon Moss, David Borrego, Lt. Dino DiMaio and William Potamiano were also listed as defendants in the case.
Melrose Park Police Chief Sam Pitassi said he was aware of the lawsuit but could not comment. He said the lawsuit has been passed on to their attorney.
The plaintiffs, Juan Rivera, Janet Escobedo, Julian Aldaco, Juan Villareal and Margarita Rivera were attending a dance competition Feb. 20 at Cailyn Banquet Hall, 2225 W. North Ave. in Melrose Park.
According to the lawsuit, the plaintiffs left the banquet hall at 1 a.m. At some point, the Melrose Park police were called to the area where the dance was taking place to investigate an alleged disturbance. None of the plaintiffs was involved in any physical altercation that evening, according to the lawsuit. Words were exchanged between two teenagers and Villareal, who is 16, but no fighting took place, the lawsuit states.
As Villareal entered his family's vehicle, an officer grabbed him from behind, slammed him into a patrol car, handcuffed him, and put him in a squad car, the lawsuit states.
Margarita Rivera asked the police where they were taking her 16 year-old son; police refused to answer but allegedly called her profane names.
According to the lawsuit, Escobedo also questioned the police, and they called her profane names and then DiMaio allegedly grabbed her by the neck, lifted her off the ground and slammed her on his police car and punched her in the face. Escobeda is 15 years old and weighs 105 pounds.
The lawsuit states Borrego then used a Taser on the back of Escobeda at least three times. While in the back of the patrol car, Villareal expressed anger about what was going on and one officer allegedly used a Taser on him.
The plaintiffs' attorney, Barbara Long, said her clients are seeking monetary damages as well as injunctive relief so that the police department would be ordered to train their officers on how to properly use a Taser. “The Taser was discharged seven to eight times,” she said regarding the incident.
Long also believes police officers on the scene overstepped their bounds dealing with the teenage girl.
“From a common sense perspective, she is just this small girl that has never been arrested and is no threat to anyone,” she said. “They are going to be hard pressed to explain why they needed to continuously subdue this little girl.”
A court date has not been set.
http://www.youtube.com/user/KevinRyan#p/a/u/2/f59pxdGW154
Sopranos Theme while taking a ride through
“glorious” Melrose Park
Melrose Park is a Mafia town that became a Mexican town. Ditto Cicero.
Yup. Right next to Stone Park, where most of the P.D. was Mob connected.
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