In Decatur, Alabama, a Black store owner, Kevin Penn, sued the white police officer who responded to a robbery and punched him.
In the lawsuit, Penn, 47, who owns Stars Spirits & Beverages in Decatur, claimed that the white officer who responded to a robbery, Justin Rippen, punched him in the face during the March 15, 2020 encounter.
Penn is now suing officer Rippen and the city where it happened.
The lawsuit, filed on March 11, 2022, alleged that the incident is an example of the systemic use of excessive force by the Decatur Police Department. The lawsuit also alleged that Penn’s constitutional rights were violated by illegal seizure and false arrest.
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A suspect allegedly tried to steal from Penn’s store on March 15, 2020. He detained the thief at gunpoint until the police arrived. Upon arriving, Penn waved officers inside, removed the clip from the gun, and put the firearm on the counter.
The surveillance video showed officers, including Rippen, approached Penn with their weapons drawn. After going back and forth yelling about Penn’s gun on the counter, Penn told police he would file a complaint. The case states Rippen then moved past two other officers and punched Penn in the face, breaking his jaw and causing him to lose a tooth.
Penn was then arrested for obstructing governmental operations.
The lawsuit accuses Decatur Police of routine instances of harassment against citizens who file complaints, terming such actions as “POP charges” or “Piss of Police” charges.
“… the City regularly receives complaints concerning officers who, as Rippen did here, react with unjustifiable violence and false charges when a citizen speaks up or otherwise asserts his rights as an American citizen,” the lawsuit reads. “It is well known in the Decatur legal community that Decatur officers frequently use these charges, commonly referred to as POP (piss off police) charges, without a legal basis. It is well known to experienced police officers and to City policymakers that officers, without proper training and supervision regarding the limits of their authority, are likely to violate the constitutional rules.”
The lawsuit accused the city and police department of failing to adequately investigate charges of police abuse and misconduct.
