Los Angeles to Settle Case where LAPD Cops Assaulted a Blind Black Man and then While He was Strapped to Hospital Bed Cops held a Towel Over his Mouth and Nose Until he Passed Out

From [HERE] and [MORE] A legally blind Black man who alleges police officers tackled and beat him outside his South Los Angeles home and then further abused him after taking him to a hospital for medical care has tentatively settled civil rights claims against the city, according to court papers obtained Saturday.

Michael Moore, 63, alleges that while he lay strapped to a gurney unable to move and surrounded by hospital guards and Los Angeles Police Department personnel, an LAPD officer held a towel over his mouth and nose until he passed out, according to the suit filed last year in Los Angeles federal court. The video also appears to show a white cop with his hand over the black man’s mouth while he was strapped to a hospital gurney.

According to the lawsuit, the officer held his hand over 63-year-old Michael Moore’s mouth until he lost consciousness at a hospital in downtown L.A. The suit also alleges LAPD falsely claimed Moore resisted arrest and threatened firefighters and an officer.

Details of the settlement were not disclosed. A notification filed with the court said the lawsuit was tentatively settled in its entirety on Nov. 11, following mediation sessions. Because the settlement is contingent on approval by the city’s claims board, budget and finance committee, city council, and mayor, it may take several months to be finalized, lawyers for both sides said.

The complaint sought unspecified punitive damages under claims including unreasonable search, unlawful seizure, excessive force, failure to intervene, battery and negligence. It names as defendants the city of Los Angeles and various LAPD officers.

The lawsuit alleges Moore — who has a history of mental illness — was arrested in February 2019 after officers misread actions caused by his disabilities as criminal activity when they came to his apartment following a medical aid call.

Moore was charged with multiple counts of assaulting a peace officer or firefighter with a deadly weapon and resisting an officer. A jury acquitted him of all charges but not before he spent 139 days in jail awaiting trial — he was unable to afford bail, court filings state.

On Feb. 28, 2019, officers arrived at Moore’s home after he got into an altercation with a woman who had been using his kitchen, court filings state. They argued about her cleaning the kitchen before she allegedly struck Moore in the face and shoved him, causing him to fall down a flight of stairs.

The lawsuit alleges she also told Moore her friends could kill him.

Before officers arrived, firefighters responded and Moore told them he could drive himself to the hospital, court filings state. But after they left, they allegedly told LAPD officers waiting outside that Moore has mental illness and is blind.

Police descended upon Moore’s apartment moments later.

“Mr. Moore did not realize that he was already surrounded by police officers, who
had crept up the stairs without identifying themselves as police or even announcing their presence,” court filings state.

As they prepared to arrest Moore, one of the officers allegedly said, he is “like blind so, he doesn’t even know we are out here,” according to the lawsuit.

Moore felt someone grab and twist his wrist, and officers “twisted his neck, slammed his head to the floor, beat him, and jammed their knees into his back,” the lawsuit states. They allegedly did not respond when he asked why he was being arrested and carried him down the stairs in handcuffs.

He was taken to Dignity Health – California Hospital Medical Center in downtown L.A., where an officer’s body camera footage shows him strapped to a gurney.

A group of medical workers, hospital security guards and officers were standing around him when one of the officers cupped his hand over Moore’s face, which is covered with a white towel, the video shows. He screams “I can’t breathe” multiple times, and later in the video, he falls quiet and his body lies still.

The lawsuit alleges the officer was “pressing his hands on Mr. Moore’s face for another minute, at one point repositioning his hands to press even more firmly on Mr. Moore’s mouth and nose.” This allegedly blocked Moore’s airway, causing him to lose consciousness and make his body go limp, according to the lawsuit.

The officer is seen later in the video taking his hand off of Moore’s face. A medical worker eventually removed the towel, court filings state.

Moore’s attorney said his client can be heard on tape crying out “I can’t breathe!” at least three times.

Moore remains “deeply traumatized” due to the alleged assault and is unable to sleep, is afraid to go outside and “lives in constant fear of the police,” according to his attorneys.