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Jan 31, 2008 9:07 am US/Eastern
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$100 Million Lawsuit Filed Over Brutality Case
Reporting
Adam May
BALTIMORE (WJZ) ―
A police officer and the City of Baltimore face a $100 million lawsuit filed by a man who says he was sexually assaulted.
Adam May reports Steven Vernarelli claims he was walking to Johns Hopkins Hospital in October, when he was stopped for no reason and sodomized with his own paper money by a Baltimore City police officer.
Vernarelli filed a $100 million lawsuit against Officer Jerome Hill.
"He took the money, ripped it and then reached behind me and shoved the twisted pieces," said Vernarelli.
The lawsuit claims two other unnamed officers laughed then left.
Vernarelli was treated for injuries to his rectum at Mercy Hospital and claims the events scarred him psychologically.
Now, Eyewitness News has learned of another incident.
"We're preparing to file another lawsuit against the same officer," said Norris Ramsey, Vernarelli's attorney.
Ramsey says a new case involves allegations of wrongful arrest and brutality.
"He was arrested and held in a paddy wagon for 12 hours. His mother, who was asking for help, was threatened that if she filed a complaint she would be arrested," he said.
Baltimore Police won't comment on pending litigation, but Officer Hill was the target of an internal investigation sting operation last week. The charging documents state an undercover officer posed as a drug suspect and when Hill was dispatched, he punched the internal affairs officer in the face.
"The officer who was the target of the integrity test arrived at the scene and approached the undercover officer. They exchanged some words, at which point the officer who was the target of the investigation assaulted the undercover ID officer," said Sterling Clifford, spokesperson for Baltimore City Police.
Hill was arrested and charged with second-degree assault, according to police documents.
Hill has been suspended without pay and remains free on $25,000 bond.
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