MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Latest on a lawsuit filed against Milwaukee and the city's police department by NBA player Sterling Brown alleging excessive force (all times local):
10:55 a.m.
A federal lawsuit against Milwaukee police alleges officers tried to reframe what happened when they used a stun gun during the arrest of Bucks' player Sterling Brown after a parking violation in January.
The lawsuit Brown filed Tuesday says a group of officers instructed a colleague writing an incident report to describe the basketball player as resisting and obstructing them. Videos released by police and obtained by WISN-TV show Brown never threatened the officers and appeared calm while he waited for a parking citation.
One officer involved in the arrest later sent a tweet mocking Brown, saying, "Nice meeting Sterling Brown of the Milwaukee Bucks at work this morning!"
Brown wasn't charged with anything.
The lawsuit naming the city, police chief, and eight officers alleges excessive force and unlawful arrest.
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Milwaukee Bucks guard Sterling Brown filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the city of Milwaukee and its police department, claiming unlawful arrest and excessive force when officers used a stun gun on him during his arrest for a parking violation.
Brown's attorney Mark Thomsen filed the lawsuit in federal court.
Brown had been talking with officers while waiting for a citation for illegally parking in a disabled spot outside a Walgreens on Jan. 26, when officers took him down because he didn't immediately remove his hands from his pockets as ordered.
Police Chief Alfonso Morales apologized to Brown last month when body-camera video of the arrest was released. Brown wasn't charged with anything and three officers were disciplined, with suspensions ranging from two to 15 days.
Eight other officers were ordered to undergo remedial training in professional communications.
Video of the confrontation shows an officer approached Brown around 2 a.m. When their conversation becomes tense, the officer calls more squad cars for help and eventually eight officers are standing around Brown. One asks him to take his hands out of his pockets and a second or two later the scuffle begins. Almost immediately, an officer yells: "Taser! Taser! Taser!"
According to the lawsuit, one of the officers later took to Twitter to mock Brown, saying, "Nice meeting Sterling Brown of the Milwaukee Bucks at work this morning! Lol#FearTheDeer
Police only released the body camera video of the first officer who contacted Brown. But additional body camera and squad car videos, obtained by WISN-TV, showed the moments after officers used a stun gun on Brown. In one, Brown is on the ground and handcuffed when an officer puts one of his boots on Brown's ankle, holding it there. Brown doesn't mention being in any discomfort but he questions the officer's actions.
"C'mon man, you're stepping on my ankle for what?" Brown said. In response, the officer said he was trying to prevent Brown from kicking anyone.
Other videos obtained by WISN-TV showed an officer talking with two colleagues seating in a squad car. They talked about how they could be perceived as racist for arresting a black Bucks player, with one saying if anything goes wrong, it "is going to be, 'Ooh, the Milwaukee Police Department is all racist, blah, blah, blah.'"
Brown told the Journal Sentinel in an interview last month that he "gave in" when police used a stun gun and that he didn't do anything to resist because he didn't want officers to "pull out their guns."
"I was just being smart. I just wanted to get out of the situation and get home," he said.
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