Excessive Force
Jury awards $16 million to man allegedly beaten by deputies
On Jan. 14, a jury awarded $16 million to a man who claimed that deputies at the Jefferson County Correctional Facility beat him while he was being processed and then again right before he was released on bond. In 2007, Joseph C. Robert claimed one deputy punched him twice in the face and slammed his head on a counter and then punched him again. A facility surveillance camera captured the assault. After Roberts was to be released, he spit blood on his release papers. Another deputy threw him into a wall and then pressed the bloody paper into his face. The jury found that both officers used excessive force. The award included $8 million in punitive damages.
