Our Constitution guarantees you and I have the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Since the government’s power is virtually unlimited, the first ten amendments to the Constitution was written to protect us from such times when the government decides to abuse its powers.
After dealing with King of England, the Founders of the Constitution believed that protection from the all-powerful government was so important that the first five amendments, focused on protecting the average citizen from the government.
Most law enforcement personnel (police officers, troopers, deputy sheriffs) are in public service to help citizens, there is always a few that will allow their power to go to their heads, and they will start abusing people.
Types of Civil Rights Cases that we handle:
Police Brutality – Excessive Force: Policing is a dangerous business and a limited amount of force or physicality comes with the territory, but there are limits to the amount of force that the Constitution allows depending on the circumstance. Just because a law enforcement officer has the right to use force doesn’t mean that he or she hasn’t stepped over the line and violated a citizen’s Constitutional Rights. If a police officer abuses his or her power by using excessive force, the outcome can be serious injury or death.
Prisoner Rights – Deliberate Indifference: In America, we incarcerate a lot of people. Some stats estimate over 2.3 million individuals are incarcerated in Federal and State Prisons and Local Jails. This means that approximately 1 in 100 adults are locked up in a local jail or prison. Florida is a large state, and the Florida Department of Corrections reported in 2016 that it had 97,521 incarcerated individuals and 136,385 active offenders on community supervision throughout the state.
Prisoners’ have some constitutional rights. The Eighth Amendment of the Constitution applies to inmates in Prison and an inmate is to be free from “cruel and unusual punishment.” For folks who are housed in Jails, the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution provides the same protections.
I represent inmates or their families in civil lawsuits arising out of confinement. These cases include:
- Deliberate Indifference to a Serious Medical Need
- Excessive Force
- Wrongful Death