Excessive force suit goes to trial in Arizona

Post Reply New Topic

More than five years after a police officer mistook an autistic teen for a drug user, a lawsuit filed against the City of Buckeye will finally head to trial.

Connor Leibel sued the city after former Officer David Grossman tackled and detained him in a neighborhood park in July 2017.

Leibel was 14 years old at the time of the incident.

The trial will begin on February 21 and will last about a week.

The case largely focuses on two claims: (1) Did Grossman used excessive force during the arrest? (2) Were Leibel’s rights violated under the Americans with Disabilities Act?

Grossman, who was a “Drug Recognition Expert,” stopped Leibel in the park because he suspected he was inhaling something, according to body camera footage.

However, Leibel was “stimming” with a small piece of string.

In defense of Grossman’s actions, Buckeye’s attorneys will argue that the officer had reasonable suspicion to stop and detain Leibel.

“A string did not cause reasonable suspicion to go away because Officer Grossman knew that items such as strings can be dipped into inhalants, hand sanitizers, or rubbing alcohol and used as part of the process of using illegal inhalants,” according to pre-trial documents filed by Buckeye’s attorneys.

After the incident, ABC15 discovered Grossman had a checkered history that was detailed in years of performance reviews and internal probes.