Atlanta Police Brutality Lawyer
Police officers have an obligation to protect and serve, as well as to enforce the law. However, not all officers uphold this duty. There’s nothing more frightening than suffering abuse, intimidation, and injury at the hands of the very people who are supposed to keep you safe. Police brutality can be defined by many actions: excessive force, using racial slurs against suspects, or even sexual misconduct. If you or a loved one has had your civil rights violated by a police officer, please contact Williams Oinonen LLC right away. It’s our mission to hold the police accountable when required. No one is above the law. Contact an Atlanta police brutality attorney today for a consultation by filling out our online form or calling (404) 654-0288.
Why You Need an Atlanta Police Brutality Attorney
Suing a police officer or a police department is complicated, and it’s essential to hire an experienced attorney. Police officers hold incredible amounts of power, and it can be challenging to hold them accountable. It’s also well known that police officers often will do whatever it takes to cover up their crime and make sure their colleagues don’t get in trouble. However, if the police are not held accountable for their wrongdoings, these actions will continue, and more people will be brutalized. If you’ve been the victim of police brutality, an experienced lawyer can help you in the following ways:
Collect Evidence
If you and your lawyer decide to file a lawsuit, there is a lot of important evidence that needs to be collected. This might include your medical records to prove that you were injured by the police, body camera footage showing how the police officers behaved, photographs of the scene where the brutality took place, and internal police policies, which can be used as evidence that the police officer did not behave accordingly during your interaction. Additionally, your lawyer can subpoena internal police documents that can show if the officer or officers involved in this incident has been accused of misconduct in the past.
Speak to Witnesses
One of the most important steps an attorney can help you with is locating and speaking to witnesses who may have seen what happened. If you know the names and contact information of anyone who witnessed the event, you can provide this to your attorney so they can take witness statements. Additionally, your attorney can search for additional witnesses who might be unknown to you. They can also interview stores and other business owners to try and obtain video footage of the incident if there were cameras nearby.
Expert Witnesses
In many police brutality cases, it will be important to have expert witnesses who can testify about the officer’s behavior and how it deviated from how they should have behaved. Additionally, you may also need expert witnesses in the medical field who can testify to your injuries, what kind of damages you suffered, and what treatment you might need in the future.
Examples of Police Brutality
- Excessive force
- Sexual misconduct
- Racial slurs
- Racial Profiling
- Intimidation or harassment
- Discriminating against a person because of their race, sex, or disability
- Torture
- Physical assault
- Blackmail
- False Arrest
- Unnecessary taser use
Statute of Limitations
If you or a loved one is the victim of police brutality in Georgia, the statute of limitations to file a lawsuit is generally two years. If you intend to file a lawsuit against the government as well, the statute of limitations is likely shorter. Because of the changing deadlines and the complicated aspects of filing a claim against the police and/or the government, it’s important to contact a lawyer right away to ensure you don’t miss any of the deadlines.
Damages
If you suffer injuries as a result of police brutality, you deserve justice, which often includes monetary compensation. If you are successful in the lawsuit you file, you could be awarded the following types of damages:
- Lost income
- Medical expenses
- Pain and suffering
- Punitive damages
- Attorney’s fees and costs of litigation and other court expenses
What About Qualified Immunity?
Police enjoy a protection called qualified immunity. This means that they can’t be sued for something they did while working in their capacity as a police officer. However, there are exceptions. Fortunately for people who are brutalized at the hands of the police, 42 U.S. Code § 1983 allows individuals to file lawsuits against police officers when their civil rights have been violated.
The Attorneys at Williams Oinonen LLC Can Help You
At Williams Oinonen LLC, we believe no one is above the law. In a police brutality case, our experienced civil rights lawyer can help you file a claim against a specific police officer as well as a police department if they violated your civil rights. We understand how scary it can be to report law enforcement misconduct or to file a claim against a police officer. When someone holds that much power and abuses it, it’s entirely unacceptable and needs to be stopped. An Atlanta police brutality attorney can help you. Contact us today for a consultation by filling out our online form or calling (404) 654-0288.