Latino Man who Offered to Translate at Traffic Stop Beat Down by Annapolis Cops

Two Annapolis men are suing the city, its police department, and two police officers in federal court, claiming they were assaulted and wrongfully arrested in 2005.

In the lawsuit, filed March 3, Jose Louis Meneses-Araiza, 27, and Quinton T. Smith, 32, allege that Officer Black and another officer were speaking to a group of Hispanic men they had stopped for a traffic violation and Mr. Meneses-Araiza walked up and offered to translate.

Officer Black ordered him to leave. When Mr. Meneses-Araiza continued to speak to the vehicle's occupants, Officer Black arrested him for disorderly conduct.

The lawsuit alleges that in the process of handcuffing Mr. Meneses-Araizaon in the street and later fingerprinting him at the police station, Officer Black repeatedly punched and kicked him in the chest. Mr. Meneses-Araiza eventually fell down, hit his head and lost consciousness inside the station.

Officers Black and Schreiber - who was taking the fingerprints - quickly called for an ambulance. The lawsuit, however, claims they never told dispatchers Mr. Meneses-Araiza hit his head, leading the paramedics to take him to Anne Arundel Medical Center for a suspected overdose.

At the hospital, a CT scan revealed a head injury and Mr. Meneses-Araiza was taken by helicopter to the Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore. There, he underwent a craniotomy.

The lawsuit alleges Officers Black and Schreiber "hatched a plan" to cover up the abuse after learning the extent of Mr. Meneses-Araiza injuries.

Specifically, the lawsuit said, Officer Black filed second-degree assault charges against Mr. Meneses-Araiza on March 31, 2005, claiming Mr. Meneses-Araiza attempted to stab him with a ball point pen at the police station. He claimed Mr. Meneses-Araiza fell down during the ensuing melee. The assault charges eventually were dismissed in June when no police officers showed up at the Annapolis District Courthouse for a hearing, Mr. Iamele said.

Then, with the help of Officer Michael Schreiber and other officers, the department worked to cover up the abuse, the lawsuit said.

Officer Black currently is on military leave while he serves in Iraq, Sheriff Brown said.

Officer Schreiber, who joined the department in 2004, continues to serve as a patrol officer in Annapolis, Officer Dalton said.

The lawsuit, which alleges battery, false arrest, false imprisonment, unlawful search and seizure, and conspiracy, claims the city and Police Department should have known Officers Black and Schreiber were "unfit" for duty and "posed unreasonable risks to citizens by way of their authority as (police officers)." It alleges the department failed to properly train and supervise officers.

Mr. Meneses-Araiza and Mr. Smith are seeking compensatory and punitive damages to be determined at trial, as well as lawyers' fees.

Mr. Meneses-Araiza suffered severe head trauma during his run-in with Officer Black, requiring brain surgery. He's incurred medical bills exceeding $71,000, the lawsuit said.

Mr. Smith required stitches to his lip after his arrest, the lawsuit said.

No hearings are scheduled in the case.

Mr. Meneses-Araiza crossed paths with Officer Black about 1 a.m. March 30 near the intersection ofMarket Space and Pinkney Street.

City police launched an internal affairs investigation of Officer Black in March, but did not find he did anything wrong, the lawsuit said.

Mr. Smith ran afoul of Officer Black August 19 on Clay Street while watching police arrest another man, the lawsuit states.

According to the suit, Mr. Smith yelled at the officers and said they were being too rough, leading one of the officers to tell him to leave.

Before Mr. Smith could get in his car, though. Officer Black came over and tried to kick out his legs, the lawsuit said. After failing with the first kick, Officer Black pulled Mr. Smith to the ground face first.

"While (Mr. Smith) was immobilized on the ground, defendant Black grabbed his head and repeatedly thrust his face into the ground. This brutal assault continued until an Officer (Sean) Leary acted to protect Plaintiff Smith by physically detaining Black," the lawsuit said.

Mr. Smith eventually was taken to the police station. There, the lawsuit said, an unknown sergeant asked Mr. Smith if he wanted to file a complaint against Officer Black, but told him he would be released on a civil citation if he did not file a complaint.

To avoid jail, Mr. Smith did not file a complaint. He was cited with failure to obey a police officer, but the charges were dismissed April 26, 2006.

This is actually the second police brutality lawsuit to be filed against Officer Schreiber in the past year.

Samuel F. Coates, 44, of Annapolis, sued the city in June 2007 claiming Officer Schreiber and Officer Christian Tucker wrongly arrested him in 2006 on Clay Street. The officers wrongly thought Mr. Coates was wanted on a warrant during a June 10, 2006, traffic stop. Before getting confirmation, the officers physically pulled him from his car, the lawsuit said.

Mr. Coates hurt his back, right side and right shoulder during the ordeal. He is asking for $2.25 million in compensatory and punitive damages, plus lawyer's fees. [MORE]