Man whose head was held to pavement during arrest sues Las Vegas police | Civil Courts

A man who had his head held against the pavement by an officer during an arrest that was recorded on body camera footage is suing the Metropolitan Police Department, alleging that he was threatened, harassed and had his wrist broken by officers after a traffic stop.

Jermiah Carter, 39, alleged in the complaint filed this month that the department, including officers Victoria Cuevas and Denton Burt, violated his civil rights and used excessive force against him.

The complaint, filed by attorney Adam Breeden, also said that Metro, as their employer, is “vicariously liable” for the actions of officers Cuevas and Burt, and alleges that both officers breached their duty and committed battery against Carter.

Metro declined to respond to the allegations, noting that the department “does not comment on pending litigation.”

In the police body camera footage of the incident provided by Metro to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, officers in the video accused Carter of punching Cuevas in the face when she was part of the officers’ attempt to detain Carter and that he had been obstructing officers by getting out of a car after they had pulled it over, refusing orders to get back into the car, and resisting.

When Carter asked officers how he was resisting arrest, officers said he had been pulled over. When Carter said he wasn’t driving the car that had been pulled over, officers told him that didn’t matter.

Traffic stop, then struggle

Just after 1 p.m. on Aug. 15, 2024, Carter was a passenger in a vehicle that was pulled over in the parking lot of his residence, according to the lawsuit. The traffic stop occurred at a downtown Las Vegas Siegel Suites apartment complex near Fremont Street and Maryland Parkway.

In the footage, released Friday, a Metro squad car with two officers inside can be seen making the traffic stop. Carter can be seen outside of a white Honda on the passenger side as one of the officers repeatedly tells him to get back into the car.

The lawsuit alleges that Carter tried to tell the officers that he had to get ready for work so that he wouldn’t be late when the officers, “in an aggressive manner and without any provocation” from Carter, “pinned” Carter against a wall.

In the footage, some of which was blurred, a struggle ensues, and Carter can be heard asking the officers what they were doing. Because the camera is obstructed when the struggle begins, and because Metro added blurring to the video to not show any officers’ faces, it’s difficult to ascertain from the video exactly what transpired at the beginning of the struggle, but the video goes on to show Cuevas holding Carter against a pool fence before other officers arrive.

One of the officers then tells Carter to “get on the ground,” and Carter can be heard saying, “I ain’t about to get on the ground.”

Eventually, multiple officers can be seen lifting Carter and then putting him down on the pavement. At that point, the footage shows, one officer can be seen holding Carter’s head against the pavement with both hands while Carter asks the woman, “What did they pull you over for?”

“Defendant Cuevas and Defendant Burt continue to restrain Plaintiff Carter against the wall aggressively, and Defendant Cuevas lifts Plaintiff Carter off the ground at this point,” the complaint said. “At this point, two additional officers arrive and take Plaintiff Carter to the ground and then forcefully press his head into the ground.”

A woman, presumed to be the driver of the Honda, can be heard asking the officer why he had to push Carter’s head against the ground. Carter said in the lawsuit that his wrist was broken.

“As the incident occurs, an officer is heard saying, ‘I’m going to break your arm,’ after which a few seconds later, as a result of the excessive force, Carter sustained significant injury, including a broken wrist,” the lawsuit complaint alleged.

“Get the f—- on the ground or I’ll break your arm,” an officer is heard saying in the video.

The complaint said Carter was never a suspect of a crime, and that there was “absolutely no valid reason” to detain him.

‘You started punching her in the face’

In the footage, one officer is heard telling Carter that he “started punching her in the face,” a reference to what an officer would later describe to other officers in the video as a struggle that ensued “as soon as Tori went to approach him to grab him” and then, according to the officer, Carter punching Cuevas, who is referred to as “Tori.”

“You started punching her in the face! What are you talking about?” the officer says to Carter. “She’s got marks on her face!”

At another point, after Carter continues to shout that he hasn’t been told why he’s being arrested, one officer offers an explanation to Carter, according to the video.

“So you obstructed our traffic stop which is why we went hands on with you and then you punched her in the face. She’s got marks on her,” the officer says.

Carter then denies that.

“I did not punch her in the face!” Carter shouts.

An officer is also heard saying in the video that when they pulled the vehicle over, they discovered it had expired tags.

While detained in the back of a Metro vehicle, Carter is heard telling the officers in the vehicle that they will “lose their jobs” over the incident. He also called the officers “stupid” and said they had no reason to detain him without telling him what he was being arrested for.

Online court records show that Carter was charged with misdemeanor counts of battery on a protected person and resisting a public officer.

The battery charge was eventually dismissed, and Carter pleaded no contest to resisting a public officer, according to the records.

Contact Akiya Dillon at adillon@reviewjournal.com. Contact Bryan Horwath at bhorwath@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BryanHorwath on X.