The assault of Sureshbhai Patel occurred on February 6, 2015. Patel, a 57-year-old Indian national who was visiting his son in Madison, Alabama, U.S., was seriously injured after being assaulted & detained by three police officers in a residential neighborhood. Patel had police called on him by a neighborhood resident for alleged suspicious behavior in the neighborhood, and did not know how to speak English. There is video footage of the officer slamming Patel to the ground. He had to be hospitalized and is partially paralyzed as a result of the injuries. The incident led to many accusations by citizens of police brutality and prompted a response from the Indian government. The incident was recorded on film by two police car dashboard cameras. Police officer Eric Parker, who is accused of injuring Patel, was fired from the Madison Police Department and charged with third-degree assault but was reinstated into the force in 2016. In March 2015, Parker was charged by the FBI with felony civil rights abuse, but was later acquitted of all charges.
Backgrounds
Sureshbhai Patel
Sureshbhai Patel is from Gujarat, India. He came to Madison one week prior to the incident to visit his son Chirag who works as an engineer there, and to assist with taking care of his 17-month-old grandson with his daughter-in-law. Patel speaks Gujarati and Hindi but not English.
Eric Parker
Parker was 26 years old at the time of the incident and was employed by the Madison Police Department from 2013 to 2015.
Incident
At 9 a.m., Patel was taking a stroll outside his son's house. A man in the neighborhood called 911 reporting that he saw a suspicious looking man lurking on the area and peering into garages. He described Patel as a "skinny black man wearing a toboggan ." In a few minutes Patel was approached by two police officers on a sidewalk. Officer Eric Parker asked Patel for his identification and Patel responded by saying that he did not know English and was from India repeatedly. The video appears to show Parker throwing Patel to the ground face first ninety seconds after the encounter began. His hands also appeared to be behind his back as he was pushed. Patel's family also allege that Patel had his arm twisted by Parker.
Injuries
Patel was hospitalized at Huntsville Hospital and Madison Hospital for spinal swelling and has undergone surgery for his vertebrae. He is partially paralyzed. He has been treated at the Healthsouth Rehabilitation Center in Huntsville, where he had to learn how to walk again. Donors have raised over $209,000 for Patel from a GoFundMe fundraiser to help pay for his medical bill.
Legal proceedings
One week after the incident, Eric Parker was charged with third-degree assault, a misdemeanor that is punishable with a maximum of one year in jail and a $6,000 fine. He turned himself in to the Limestone County Jail on February 12 and posted $1,000 bond. On March 26, he was indicted by a federal grand jury. Parker was charged by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with deprivation of rights under the color of law, which is a felony that carries a maximum of ten years in prison. According to US AttorneyJoyce White Vance, the violation includes the constitutional right to be free from "unreasonable force." In April, Parker pleaded not guilty to the federal charge at the federal courthouse in Huntsville, and was released on $5,000 bond. His trial for the federal charge was set for June 1, 2015, while the state charge trial was set for May 13, 2015. On September 11, 2015, a jury failed to reach a verdict for the federal civil rights violations charge. Federal prosecutors planned to retry Parker. On January 13, 2016 U.S.District Judge Madeline Haikala granted an acquittal motion by the Alabama cop’s attorneys, ending the federal civil trial for Parker permanently. The prosecution filed a counter motion to not acquit Parker, but the judge dismissed the prosecutions’ motion, instead siding with the defense, saying the victim, committed a misdemeanor by leaving the house without identification. The first federal case for civil rights violations against Parker ended in a mistrial when ten white male jurors voted to acquit him while two black female jurors voted to convict. The second and last federal case against Parker also ended in a mistrial, with a federal judge from Alabama dismissing the charges against Parker to prevent a third federal trial. The misdemeanor assault charge against Parker was dismissed in July 2016.
Lawsuit
On February 12, Sureshbhai Patel and his lawyer, Hank Sherrod, filed a federal lawsuit asking for an unspecified amount of money, accusing the Madison police of excessive force and racial profiling. On May 27, 2020 The United States Court of Appeals 11th Circuit ruled that a civil rights lawsuit filed against Madison police officer Eric Parker and the city of Madison can move forward.
Reactions
U.S. reactions
, an Indian American congressman and co-chairman of the Congressional Caucus on India, described the incident as "horrible and tragic." Members of the Asian Pacific American Caucus, including Michael Honda and Judy Chu, have condemned the treatment of Patel and claimed that it was excessive force & an example of "contempt of cop".
Response from Indian government
, a former spokesman for the Ministry of External Affairs of India, said that the Indian government was disturbed by the treatment of Mr. Patel and was taking the incident "very seriously." He stated that India's officials planned to contact the U.S. mission in New Delhi and officials in Washington, D.C. and Alabama.
Return to work
Eric Parker was subsequently allowed to return to work at the Madison Police Department, being cleared of any policy violation of the department. He was required to undergo re-certification.
