SAN DIEGO — An excessive force lawsuit was announced Wednesday against the San Diego Police Department on behalf of a man who was shot by officers with beanbag rounds and bitten by a police dog in southeast San Diego, all while his attorneys say he was unarmed and not resisting.
The Oct. 25 arrest of Marcus Evans left him with injuries that have prevented him from being able to work, according to his attorneys, who allege Evans was shot while complying with officers' commands.
After he was initially struck with a beanbag round, the attorneys say he fell to the ground, where he was shot two more times.
Video footage of the arrest, which was captured by a local freelance photographer, led to a formal complaint against the police department, which announced last week that it was launching an internal investigation.
Officers initially responded just before midnight to a report that a man in the area had threatened a woman with a gun.
Police said a suspect was tracked to a Duluth Avenue home, where the suspect -- who was shirtless, barefoot, and only wearing shorts -- exited the home.
SDPD alleged Evans was "repeatedly ordered" to surrender, but he didn't, leading officers to fire three beanbag rounds and deploy a police dog.
Evans was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and resisting arrest, but was not booked into jail and charges were not filed against him. No gun was located at the scene, SDPD said.
Evans' attorneys, whose account differs from SDPD regarding the number of police dogs deployed, say that when the first beanbag round was fired, Evans had his hands raised and told officers he was unarmed and not resisting.
The first shot struck him in the abdomen, causing him "immediate injury" and sending him to the ground, where he lay in the fetal position, according to his attorneys. With his hands still raised while on the ground, a second beanbag round was fired and a dog was deployed, which "made contact with Mr. Evans."
Evans' attorneys say a second dog was later deployed, causing him "severe bite injuries," then he was shot with a final beanbag round, "despite the fact that he was already on the ground and not displaying any threatening behavior."
Attorney Dante Pride said in a statement, "This lawsuit represents a call for accountability and justice in cases where officers resort to excessive force, compromising public trust. The San Diego Police Department has a duty to protect, not harm, the communities it serves. We will pursue justice for our client and seek measures to prevent incidents like these from happening to others."
CBS 8 reached out to SDPD for comment, but a spokesperson said they could not comment due to pending litigation.
In their statement issued last week on the department's internal investigation, SDPD said the incident would be monitored by the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training, and reviewed by the Department of Justice and San Diego's Commission on Police Practices. While charges were not filed, SDPD said the case was sent to the City Attorney's Office "for further review."
SDPD Chief Scott Wahl said, "As with many uses of force, videos of this nature are very difficult to view. We are already in the process of conducting a thorough review of the incident, and I'm committed to exploring how the situation could have been handled differently. The San Diego Police Department welcomes conversations about our use of force procedures and regularly evaluates those practices to determine if improvements are needed."
