The lawyer representing a Texas High School student who alleges excessive use of force by a Texarkana, Texas, police officer caused him to lose vision in his left eye is calling for an outside law enforcement agency to investigate.
DaQuan Huey, 17, was struck in the eye when a Texarkana, Texas, police officer fired a JPX pepper spray gun Jan. 27. Huey's lawyer, Lee Merritt of Philadelphia, said at a press conference Tuesday that Huey was a "peace maker" who was attempting to defuse a physical confrontation when he was permanently injured by alleged excessive force.
"Law enforcement is not competent to investigate themselves," Merritt said. "There should be a proper investigation."
Merritt said he is seeking an investigation by an outside agency, such as Texas Rangers, into the Texarkana, Texas, Police Department's conduct. Merritt said he wants pending charges of disorderly conduct and resisting arrest against Huey "immediately dropped."
"These are charges we are accustomed to seeing when law enforcement makes a mistake," Merritt said. "They make the victim the culprit."
Merritt said he wants the Bowie County District Attorney's Office to seek a criminal indictment of the officer who fired the JPX gun. Bowie County District Attorney Jerry Rochelle said his office has not yet received an investigative file from law enforcement on which to base any decision concerning the pending charges against Huey or the possibility that criminal charges might be levied against a TTPD patrol officer.
"It would be improper for me to comment on a pending case in any event," Rochelle said.
In a Feb. 4 press statement, TTPD Spokesman Shawn Vaughn said Huey was actively engaged in a physical confrontation with another person and holding a baseball bat when officers arrived to address multiple disturbance calls. The officers were responding to calls regarding fights in the area of Brookwood Street and Belt Road in Texarkana, Texas. The Feb. 4 TTPD press statement alleges Huey appeared to be attacking at the time the JPX gun was deployed and that witnesses indicated Huey had been struck with the bat just before officers arrived.
While the Feb. 4 press statement alleges about 80 people were fighting in the street, Huey said at Tuesday's press conference that the crowd was closer to 20.
Merritt said Huey was retreating from someone coming toward him when he was grabbed from behind by someone he did not know was a police officer. Merritt said that when Huey turned to face the person behind him, he was struck with the full force of the JPX gun.
Huey said he once had plans to work in the construction industry, perhaps building homes for celebrities, but that his new vision issues may make his dreams impossible. Huey's mother, Miracle Farr, said she has lost income because she can't work when she is seeking medical treatment for her son. Farr mentioned that Huey may need additional surgery.
"They took my son's eyesight," Farr said.
TTPD's Feb. 4 press statement alleges Huey appeared to be attacking an officer at the time the JPX gun was deployed and that witnesses indicated Huey had been struck with the bat just before officers arrived.
Merritt said he wants TTPD to disclose the name of the officer responsible for using the JPX gun. TTPD Officer Scott Lillis and the City of Texarkana, Texas, are named as defendants in a federal lawsuit filed Feb. 4 by Dallas lawyer Daryl Washington on behalf of Farr and Huey in the Texarkana Division of the Eastern District of Texas.
The complaint alleges Lillis is the one who fired the JPX but Merritt said he can't be certain until he receives confirmation from TTPD.
"We may need to amend our complaint later," Merritt said.
Records in the federal case indicate the city and Lillis were served Monday with copies of the federal complaint. Merritt has not entered a formal notice of appearance in the federal suit.
The complaint alleges Huey's right under the Fourth Amendment to be free from the use of excessive force has been violated and seeks actual and punitive damages. The case is assigned to U.S. District Judge Robert Schroeder III and U.S. Magistrate Judge Caroline Craven.