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Teenager Sues Over Taser Arrest While Riding Bicycle Outside Tacoma Mall Teenager Sues Over Being Pulled From Bike, Tasered and Arrested Outside Tacoma Mall
(35 minutes later)
Monique Tillman was 15 years old when, she says, a police officer pulled her off her bicycle, slammed her to the ground and tased her after she rode through a mall parking lot in Tacoma, Wash. The arrest, in which she was accused of causing a disturbance, was caught on surveillance video. Now, the 17-year-old is suing the officer, the mall and some of its security guards.Monique Tillman was 15 years old when, she says, a police officer pulled her off her bicycle, slammed her to the ground and tased her after she rode through a mall parking lot in Tacoma, Wash. The arrest, in which she was accused of causing a disturbance, was caught on surveillance video. Now, the 17-year-old is suing the officer, the mall and some of its security guards.
The footage of Ms. Tillman’s arrest in 2014 by the officer, Jared Williams, is the latest video to garner national attention and spur debate over what activists have denounced as the unduly harsh treatment of youths, mostly black or Hispanic, by police officers, including recent cases in South Carolina and Texas.The footage of Ms. Tillman’s arrest in 2014 by the officer, Jared Williams, is the latest video to garner national attention and spur debate over what activists have denounced as the unduly harsh treatment of youths, mostly black or Hispanic, by police officers, including recent cases in South Carolina and Texas.
The complaint accuses Officer Williams of negligence in his treatment of a minor while working off duty as a security guard at the mall, and it seeks unspecified damages for physical and mental harm.The complaint accuses Officer Williams of negligence in his treatment of a minor while working off duty as a security guard at the mall, and it seeks unspecified damages for physical and mental harm.
“A child riding a bike should not have to worry that a police officer will stop her without legal cause and brutalize her,” Ms. Tillman’s lawyer, Vito de la Cruz, said in a statement. “Our communities are weary of another African-American child being hurt by unwarranted and excessive police force.”“A child riding a bike should not have to worry that a police officer will stop her without legal cause and brutalize her,” Ms. Tillman’s lawyer, Vito de la Cruz, said in a statement. “Our communities are weary of another African-American child being hurt by unwarranted and excessive police force.”
“I just feel like they should be held accountable for what they did to me,” Ms. Tillman told Q13 News, a local TV station last week.“I just feel like they should be held accountable for what they did to me,” Ms. Tillman told Q13 News, a local TV station last week.
The lawsuit was picked up by local and national news organizations and it drew strong reaction online. On Facebook, readers posted messages on the Tacoma Police Department’s site calling for Officer Williams to be fired, and they have posted the YouTube video showing Ms. Tillman, who is black, pinned against a vehicle, thrown to the ground and being tased by the white officer.The lawsuit was picked up by local and national news organizations and it drew strong reaction online. On Facebook, readers posted messages on the Tacoma Police Department’s site calling for Officer Williams to be fired, and they have posted the YouTube video showing Ms. Tillman, who is black, pinned against a vehicle, thrown to the ground and being tased by the white officer.
As of last week, Officer Williams was still working for the department, according to The Seattle Times. Messages left for the Tacoma Police Department seeking comment were not immediately answered on Monday.As of last week, Officer Williams was still working for the department, according to The Seattle Times. Messages left for the Tacoma Police Department seeking comment were not immediately answered on Monday.
The video, just over three minutes long, shows Ms. Tillman and her older brother Eric Branch riding bicycles through the parking lot of the Tacoma Mall on May 24, 2014. They were on their way home, the lawsuit says.The video, just over three minutes long, shows Ms. Tillman and her older brother Eric Branch riding bicycles through the parking lot of the Tacoma Mall on May 24, 2014. They were on their way home, the lawsuit says.
Two white vans pull up, including a Tacoma Police Department cruiser, with its lights flashing and air horn blaring. Officer Williams, wearing a Police Department uniform, gets out from behind the wheel of the department vehicle. The youths stop, and when Ms. Tillman ask him what they did wrong, the lawsuit says, Officer Williams reply that the two are being “trespassed” for causing a disturbance.Two white vans pull up, including a Tacoma Police Department cruiser, with its lights flashing and air horn blaring. Officer Williams, wearing a Police Department uniform, gets out from behind the wheel of the department vehicle. The youths stop, and when Ms. Tillman ask him what they did wrong, the lawsuit says, Officer Williams reply that the two are being “trespassed” for causing a disturbance.
Ms. Tillman can be seen gesticulating while speaking with the officer. She asked what they did wrong several times, the lawsuit says, and when she tried to ride off, Officer Williams pulled her off her bicycle by her left arm. The suit said he “tossed” her around like a “child’s doll, slamming her into parked vehicles, forcibly shoving his forearm into her chest, grabbing her by the hair and body-slamming her into the pavement.”Ms. Tillman can be seen gesticulating while speaking with the officer. She asked what they did wrong several times, the lawsuit says, and when she tried to ride off, Officer Williams pulled her off her bicycle by her left arm. The suit said he “tossed” her around like a “child’s doll, slamming her into parked vehicles, forcibly shoving his forearm into her chest, grabbing her by the hair and body-slamming her into the pavement.”
Officer Williams then used his department-issued Taser on her, handcuffed her and put her into a patrol car, the lawsuit says. Ms. Tillman was charged with assaulting the officer and resisting arrest, but the charges were later dismissed at trial, the lawsuit says.Officer Williams then used his department-issued Taser on her, handcuffed her and put her into a patrol car, the lawsuit says. Ms. Tillman was charged with assaulting the officer and resisting arrest, but the charges were later dismissed at trial, the lawsuit says.
The video and the lawsuit, filed in Pierce County Superior Court in Washington on May 6, were posted on the website of Tamaki Law, where Ms. Tillman’s lawyer works. In addition to Officer Williams, it names Universal Protection Services, the security company Officer Williams was working for off duty; and the Simon Property Group, owners of the Tacoma Mall, as defendants.The video and the lawsuit, filed in Pierce County Superior Court in Washington on May 6, were posted on the website of Tamaki Law, where Ms. Tillman’s lawyer works. In addition to Officer Williams, it names Universal Protection Services, the security company Officer Williams was working for off duty; and the Simon Property Group, owners of the Tacoma Mall, as defendants.
Ten other people, some of them Tacoma police officers and others security guards, were also listed as defendants. The complaint did not name them or describe their role in the episode.Ten other people, some of them Tacoma police officers and others security guards, were also listed as defendants. The complaint did not name them or describe their role in the episode.
Mr. de la Cruz said in an email that part of the delay in filing the lawsuit was because they had waited for the criminal case against Ms. Tillman to conclude. The suit says she had been stopped without reasonable suspicion and probable cause.Mr. de la Cruz said in an email that part of the delay in filing the lawsuit was because they had waited for the criminal case against Ms. Tillman to conclude. The suit says she had been stopped without reasonable suspicion and probable cause.
Jennifer Carroll, a spokeswoman for the Tacoma Mall, declined on Monday to comment on the lawsuit but confirmed that Officer Williams had been working as a mall security officer at the time. When asked about the mall’s rules governing bicycle riding in its parking lot, she had no comment.Jennifer Carroll, a spokeswoman for the Tacoma Mall, declined on Monday to comment on the lawsuit but confirmed that Officer Williams had been working as a mall security officer at the time. When asked about the mall’s rules governing bicycle riding in its parking lot, she had no comment.