A federal jury will decide this week whether two Tucson police officers used excessive force against a UA student in 2015, and if so, how much should be awarded as damages in a case the student’s attorney says is about “the loss of the American Dream.”
Miles Parish was an up and coming track star who came to UA on a scholarship because he believed it was his “best shot” at making the 2016 Summer Olympics team. Those hopes were dashed on Dec. 14, 2015, after Parish suffered a concussion when TPD responded to a loud party call at his residence.
U.S. District Court Judge Jennifer Zipps has already ruled one of the responding officers violated Parish’s Fourth Amendment rights by unlawfully using his foot to keep the student’s front door open. The jurors will also be deciding whether that action warrants an award of damages.
Parish’s co-counsel Ryan Skiver told the jury during closing arguments last Friday that a $4 million award would be appropriate, although he added “you certainly can go higher.”
The City of Tucson and officers Troy Lansdale and Bradley Kush were sued by Parish in December 2016. The trial began May 25, the one-year anniversary of the police brutality death of George Floyd in Minnesota.
The eight jurors heard testimony from more than one dozen witnesses, including Chief Chris Magnus who took over as head of TPD just weeks after the incident. Jurors also heard from various medical professionals, witnesses, and officers, including Lansdale and Kush.
The jurors will also have to decide whether the officers engaged in assault and battery by using excessive force against Parish, who insists he agreed to have his friends leave but first he wanted to close the door.
Lansdale refused to allow Parish to close the door despite having what an Internal Affairs investigation deemed “no legal justification” to keep his foot on the threshold once Parish asked him to remove it.
A key question for the jury is whether the City of Tucson, via the Tucson Police Department, had a “policy or custom” in which officers engaged in a widespread practice of violating people’s Fourth Amendment rights by placing a foot on the threshold of a door without legal cause to do so.
Lansdale testified that placing his foot in the doorway to keep a door open was an officer safety issue. Another officer testified the maneuver was “a reasonable and expected thing” to do, despite any potential constitutional issues.
Parish tried to push his door closed which caused Lansdale’s toe to be trapped. This in turn prompted more force by Parish and the officers, who ordered Parish to stop pushing on the door. At one point, Kush got his torso pinned in the doorway as he tried to reach inside.
Once Lansdale’s toe became caught, officers simply turned to “officer safety mode” to protect him, attorney Daryl Audilett told the jury. This included performance of an “impact strike” on the door to force it open.
The momentum of the maneuver caused officers to fall into Parish’s residence and the confrontation escalated. Zipps has already ruled that the warrantless entry in that situation was not unlawful. But whether Parish’s actions constituted resisting arrest and thus escalated the situation is something jurors can consider.
Another issue is whether Lansdale and Kush engaged in excessive force when pulling Parish out of his home and taking him into custody for resisting arrest and obstruction of government process. Using excessive force can be a violation of the Fourth Amendment, so jurors will have to balance the severity of the alleged crime police were investigating with the imminent threat posed to officers and others, and whether the suspect is resisting or evading arrest.
Once Parish was out of the residence, he was placed face down on concrete. He was then struck four times in the back of the head while officers tried to handcuff him. When officers lifted up the 6 foot, 6 inch Parish to take him to a patrol car, his legs dragged on the ground, which prompted officers to “hog tie” his legs.
The Internal Affairs investigation deemed Landsdale’s use of force justified but found the officer violated several TPD general orders in his handling of the loud party call, resulting in a written reprimand.
Parish testified he started in track at age 8 and was offered several college scholarships in track and field prior to the 2013-14 school year after he was a 2013 California State Champion. He chose the University of Arizona over Baylor, FSU, USC, Oregon, and others as he believed it was his best shot at the Olympics.
His success at UA prior to the December 2015 incident included being a 2014 IAAF World Junior Championships gold medalist, a 2015 All-Pac-12 for the 4×400-meter relay team, 2015 All-Pac-12 for the 400-meter hurdles, and 2015 NCAA Honorable Mention All-American.
Parish was given a future court date and released from jail a few hours after his arrest. He testified to visiting Banner UMC on his own after being denied medical attention at the jail.
Dr. Donald Porter, one of the UA team physicians, testified Parish suffered a concussion that affected his coordination. He also found evidence of facial contusions, wrist spasms, and dental injuries. Parish eventually rejoined the team but never duplicated his past speed or success.
The criminal charges were eventually dismissed, but he testified by then all hopes of the Olympics were gone. Parish says he continues to have issues with stress triggers, such as flashing police lights and someone touching him from the back.