Man sues State Police for unlawful detainment, assault

CHARLESTON -- A Bluefield man is suing the West Virginia State Police after he claims he was unlawfully detained and arrested.

Col. Timothy Pack, the superintendent of the West Virginia State Police; and J.H. Young, a state trooper, were also named as defendants in the suit.

On May 2, John G. Wilson was unlawfully detained, unlawfully arrested and then physically battered and assaulted, according to a complaint filed Sept. 3 in Kanawha Circuit Court.

Wilson claims Young began swearing at him, removed his glasses from his face and then struck him in the head, which knocked him to the floor. He claims when he attempted to get up, Young struck him in the head again, which knocked him on top of a desk in the room.

Young then grabbed Wilson's foot and pulled him from the desk and onto the floor, then began kicking and stomping him in the chest, abdomen and groin, according to the suit.

Wilson claims at that point he overheard one of the other troopers state that "he's really small, you're going to hurt him."

Following the brutal assault and battery, Young told Wilson that "nothing happened" and that if he reported the incident, he would "wake up in intensive care," according to the suit.

Young further informed Wilson that if he requested medical help when he got to jail, the jail would contact him to take him to the hospital at which time Young would finish him off, according to the suit.

Wilson claims the next day when he was released from jail, he went to a neighbor's apartment, who called an ambulance and transported him to Bluefield Regional Medical Center, where it was discovered that his spleen had been ruptured. He was then air-lifted to Charleston Area Medical Center and underwent surgery to remove the spleen.

Wilson claims he also obtained treatment for testicular damage, multiple lacerations and abrasions and spent 11 days at the hospital.

Wilson is seeking compensatory and punitive damages. He is being represented by Matthew S. Criswell and Mark L. French.

The case has been assigned to Circuit Judge Carrie Webster.

Kanawha Circuit Court case number: 10-C-1607