CHARLESTON – A Loudendale man has filed a federal lawsuit against the City of South Charleston and two police officers who he says used excessive force on him after a May traffic accident left him paralyzed from the waist down.
William Allen “Billy” Means filed his complaint August 25 in U.S. District Court against E.M. Peterson, D. Harvey and the City of South Charleston.
“If the South Charleston Police were required to wear body cameras, these horrific incidents would not be so prevalent,” attorney L. Dante diTrapano told The West Virginia Record. “Mr. Means was fortunate that a Good Samaritan recorded this barbaric police misconduct.
diTrapano
“To pepper spray and stomp on the head of a paralyzed young man is the epitome of excessive force and cruel and unusual punishment.”
The nearly two-minute video can be viewed online at YouTube.
According to the complaint, Means was riding his motorcycle May 2 along U.S. 119 in South Charleston. He says Corporal Peterson trailed Means with the intention of pulling him over “evidently because Billy’s motorcycle was painted black, and the registration did not appear to match the motorcycle.”
After he says he was trailed for about 15 minutes on 119, Means turned onto Trace Fork Road, then Brounland Road, then Emmons Road as Peterson followed him without his lights flashing. Peterson called for backup, and Patrolman Harvey joined him.
The complaint details some of the radio conversation and quotes police reports. Peterson says on police radio he hadn’t flashed his lights at Means yet and admits in his report the same.
Peterson claims in the report that he signaled for Means to pull over when he turned off U.S. 119.
“In the conversation over police radio between Peterson, Harvey and another individual (presumably the dispatcher), however, sirens can only be heard when Patrolman Harvey’s microphone is on, not when Peterson is talking,” the complaint states.
Means says Peterson stayed closed behind him in a marked SUV. When Means slowed to cross railroad tracks on Emmons Road, Peterson’s SUV struck Means’ rear tire, causing him to lose control and careen into a sludge pond beside the road. Peterson stopped his SUV right on the railroad tracks. Harvey was just behind Peterson and assisted at the scene of the crash.
Means’ spinal cord was broken mid-back, at T5. He remains paralyzed from the waist down.
“Peterson and Harvey got out, and Harvey pepper sprayed Billy before they dragged him out of the pond,” the complaint states. “Unbeknownst to the officers, two women in a passing motor vehicle saw the crash, pulled over and began recording the interactions between the officers and Billy.
“As Billy was lying paralyzed from the waist down on the side of the road, one of the two officers ran to his car, while the other – upon information and belief Peterson, but it could have been Harvey – stomped down hard on Billy’s head.”
Means says the officers later lied about the facts.
“Because neither Peterson nor Harvey recorded the events with their own body cameras or dashboard cameras, and because they were unaware the stomping had been caught on video by bystanders, they felt at liberty to make up facts and include these in their official incident reports as a means of concealing their unlawful acts,” the complaint states.
He says those lies and omission include Peterson claiming he turned his lights on to signal Means to pull over, Peterson claiming Means lost control of his motorcycle when he hit the railroad tracks and neither of the officers’ reports mentioning they stomped Means’ head.
Means accuses the defendants of excessive force. He accuses the Peterson and the City of South Charleston of negligence, gross negligence and reckless disregard in the operation of a motor vehicle. He also says the city should have had technology in place for video recording encounters between law enforcement officers and civilians.
He seeks compensatory damages for his pain and suffering, special damages for future medical care and costs, pre- and post-judgment interest, attorney fees, court costs as well as punitive damages. He also seeks an order requiring the city to provide for video recording of all police encounters with civilians and, if such video doesn’t exist, a declaration for the presumption against the version of events told by the officers and in favor of the opposing version.
South Charleston Police Chief B.L. Rinehart did not return a phone call seeking comment on the lawsuit.
Means is being represented by diTrapano, Alex McLaughlin and Benjamin D. Adams of Calwell Luce diTrapano in Charleston. The case has been assigned to District Judge Joseph Goodwin.
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia case number 2:20-cv-00561