Milwaukee City Attorney's Office releases statement on response to Sterling Brown arrest lawsuit
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The deputy city attorney says the 51-page response was not a motion for dismissal or a brief, but rather a first filing on behalf of the defendants, something they say is necessary if the case goes to trial.
In Friday's response, the city denies any wrongdoing and says Brown is the one at fault for how events unfolded during Brown's arrest on January 26. Brown allegedly double-parked in a handicap spot. Bodycam footage shows police tasing Brown and arresting him.
Brown was not charged in the incident.
Below is the full statement from the city:
"Several recent news accounts compel us to comment publicly to protect our clients from misstatements or incomplete statements about our filing Friday in Sterling Brown’s civil rights lawsuit against the city, the chief, and various police officers.
The document that was filed on Friday was an answer and statement of affirmative defenses in Mr. Brown’s federal lawsuit. It was not, as incorrectly implied, a motion for dismissal or a brief. It was the first filing on behalf of all of the defendants, something that is absolutely necessary if our clients must seek to have a judge and jury determine whether Mr. Brown’s rights under the United States Constitution were
violated.Merely filing an answer does not, however, eliminate the opportunity to resolve this legal dispute before any trial.
Contrary to press reports, this answer was not inconsistent with the chief’s actions as a result of this incident. Nor was it inconsistent with any desire that the officers had handled the matter in a different way. The chief addressed violations of police department rules governing professional, respectful and courteous police conduct. Mr. Brown’s complaint in federal court asserts much more, claiming that the officers and others violated his rights under the United States Constitution."