Lawsuit Alleges Man was Left Paralyzed and Required Leg Amputation Following Handcuffed Ride in Police Van

A federal lawsuit alleges a man was left paralyzed and needed leg amputations after St. Petersburg, Florida, police officers placed him in restraints, put him in the back of a van without a seatbelt, and drove recklessly. The man, Heriberto Alejandro Sanchez-Mayen, has filed the lawsuit against the city of St. Petersburg and officers Sarah Gaddis and Michael Thacker. A corresponding video from a police body camera has also been given to CNN, showing the arrest, Sanchez-Mayen’s movement inside the van, and the aftermath of the events.

The complaint stems from an incident on June 8, 2023, when Gaddis detained and arrested Sanchez-Mayen for trespassing. In the body cam video, Gaddis can be heard changing her mind from giving Sanchez-Mayen a ticket to deciding he should go to jail due to many previous complaints. Thacker arrived at the scene, handcuffed Sanchez-Mayen using a metal belly chain that restricted arm use, and put him inside a seatless van.

Once inside the van, the lawsuit alleges that Thacker drove recklessly, coming to a hard stop at a red light, which caused Sanchez-Mayen to hit his head on a metal partition. Although the video does not capture the entire ride, Thacker is said to have only turned on the van camera after hearing a loud crash. Upon arriving at Pinellas County jail, Thacker found Sanchez-Mayen unconscious and dragged his motionless body out of the van, resulting in further head injuries.

As a result of the incident, Sanchez-Mayen sustained spinal cord injuries that left him a quadriplegic (paralyzed in all limbs) and led to the amputation of both his legs above the knee. The lawsuit argues that Sanchez-Mayen should never have been arrested, especially given the trespassing charges were later dismissed. Thacker and Gaddis face accusations of excessive force, intentional battery, false arrest, and malicious prosecution, while the city is charged with negligent supervision and training, among others. The plaintiffs have requested a jury trial.

The St. Petersburg Police Department has denied the claims and expressed confidence in the judicial process. They’ve deferred the media inquiries to the City of St. Petersburg City Attorney’s Office. CNN’s attempts to contact the city and the officers for additional comments have received no response. The incident is reminiscent of “rough rides”, where a detained person is place unrestrained in the back of a van during erratic driving, a term that gained notoriety following the controversial 2015 death of Freddie Gray in Baltimore.