Dallas Police Brutality Lawyer

Helping Recover Entitled Compensation for Police Brutality in Texas

The police are committed to protect and serve our community. Even when a person is arrested, officers must uphold the constitutional rights of everyone to ensure an arrest is lawful and just. Although situations may arise that result in the use of physical and even deadly force, it is not uncommon for law enforcement officials to use such force to the point of police brutality.

If you or a loved one has been a victim of police brutality in Texas, Scott H. Palmer, P.C. is dedicated to helping you obtain your financial compensation and ensure the officer who used excessive force against you is disciplined or terminated. With nearly 100 years of collective experience, our Dallas police brutality attorney can investigate your case, collect and assess evidence, and build an effective and personalized case strategy to ensure you get the justice and award you deserve. We represent clients in Dallas, the state of Texas, and even nationwide.

Contact us today to schedule a case evaluation with our Dallas police brutality lawyers by calling (214) 891-3382.

What Is Considered Police Brutality?

Police brutality is a civil rights violation, a type of police misconduct where law enforcement officers use

 excessive or unwarranted force in a situation that does not call for it. This can include physical, mental, or verbal harassment and injury as well as property damage or death. The use of unnecessary physical force should be avoided if possible.

Types of Police Brutality

While many officers perform their duties within the state and federal laws. Yet, some of them take things too far. Police brutality violates your constitutional rights. Even if you comply with everything the officer says during the incident, this type of violence can happen regardless.

The following are different types of police brutality in Texas:

• Excessive force
• Unnecessary use of force
• Unlawful arrest or detainment
• Unlawful search and seizure
• Wrongful confessions
• Falsified evidence
• Dangerous and/or unnecessary vehicle chases
• Prison abuse
• Misuse of authority (i.e. a police officer engages in sexual assault)
• Wrongful police shootings
• Wrongful death caused by a law enforcement official
• Failure to protect inmates

What Can You Do to Address Police and Jailer Misconduct?

If you have suffered an injury or the death of a loved one as a result of police brutality, you may be wondering what avenues are available to address such incidents in Texas. It is imperative to hire an experienced Dallas police brutality lawyer to review your case and figure out all your available legal options.

The following are three main avenues for addressing police brutality:

• Internal complaint – Civilians can file complaints about a specific police officer through the internal affairs division of the officer’s police department. After conducting an internal investigation, the police department may discipline or terminate the officer. Unfortunately, many cases end up on the officer’s internal file and nothing more.
• Criminal complaint – Civilians may also write a formal complaint to the Texas District Attorney or the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department. Although state or federal prosecutors decide whether to pursue the case, many of them decline to do so unless the circumstances and facts of the case are egregious. However, grand juries rarely indict law enforcement officials and judges often give lenient penalties to convicted officers.
• Civil lawsuit – Considered the most effective avenue to address police brutality, civilians may file a civil lawsuit to not only pursue monetary damages but to also change the way a police department manages its officers and deals with officer misconduct to ensure such behavior doesn’t occur again. Since officers have a certain amount of “immunity” to such lawsuits, a strong case entails the violation of a person’s constitutional rights.

Ready to Protect Your Rights & Best Interests in a Police Brutality Case

When you obtain legal representation from our legal team for an issue of police brutality, we can help you gather as much evidence as possible of the incident. If you can, take photos of your injuries and get the names and contact information of any witnesses to the incident. Then, write down all you can remember about the incident and include certain facts such as the reason you were stopped by the police and when the incident escalated to officer misconduct.

Call (214) 891-3382 to discuss your case with our Dallas police brutality attorney today.