Bicyclist sues Denison police officer over abuse allegations

A bicyclist is suing a police officer and the city of Denison claiming the officer beat him while he was in custody.  He alleges the city allows that type of behavior and is seeking $1 million. 

Logan Bartley filed a lawsuit Jan. 29 in the U.S. Court for the Eastern District of Texas Sherman Division against Denison Police Officer Cory Kreil and the city of Denison alleging his Fourth and Fifth Amendment rights were violated.

The lawsuit states that Bartley was riding his bicycle near the 2600 block of Highway 91 in Denison on Nov. 8, 2012, when he arrived at a railroad track.

According to the complaint, a train had recently passed through and the train warning lights were still on and bars were still down. Bartley states he rode through the intersection knowing the train had already passed.

Bartley says after he crossed the tracks that a Denison police officer got behind him and told him to pull over. He complied and pulled into the parking lot of an adjacent building.

"Bartley knew he had not committed any traffic violation by disregarding any railroad crossing warnings because he was traveling on a bicycle," the suit states. "The traffic law regarding the matter specifically applies only to operators of vehicles."

But the officer placed Bartley under arrest, according to the suit. He alleges the officer and others used aggressive force to handcuff him when the defendant Officer Kreil arriving as backup, the suit states.

Bartley alleges that two officers had him physically restrained when Kriel punched him twice in the face and placed a choke hold on him, according to the complaint. Other officers threatened to hit him again, the complaint states.

Bartley is seeking $100,000 in compensatory damages and $900,000 in punitive damages, plus court costs.

He is represented by private attorney Micah Belden.

The case has been assigned to District Judge Richard Schell.

Court Case No. 4:14-CV-00061-RAS

 

This is a report on a civil lawsuit filed at the United States District Court Eastern District of Texas Sherman Division. The details in this report come from an original complaint filed by a plaintiff. Please note that a complaint represents an accusation by a private individual, not the government. It is not an indication of guilt, and it represents only one side of the story.