Man Claims Police Beat Him, Knocked Him Out Of Wheelchair
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A paraplegic man claims two Chicago Police officers beat him and knocked him out of his wheelchair during a confrontation at a Loop doughnut shop.
As WBBM Newsradio's David Roe reports, Reginald Edwards, 32, claims he was eating and drinking coffee at the Dunkin' Donuts at 31 E. Adams St., when a staffer demanded that he leave, according to a Chicago Tribune report.
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The Tribune account did not specify why Edwards was kicked out, nor the date when the events happened.
The lawsuit says two police officer walked in and pushed Edwards' wheelchair outside. Afterward, they hit him in the face and hauled him onto a Chicago Transit Authority bus that took him to the Central District police station, at 1718 S. State St., the Tribune reported.
At the police station, the officers ordered Edwards to "wipe the blood off his face" and tell their supervisor that nothing had happened, or he would be charged with a felony, according to the Tribune account of the lawsuit.
But Edwards refused, so the officers shook and struck him and knocked him out of the wheelchair, according to the Tribune account of the lawsuit. The impact ripped a catheter out of Edwards' genitals and caused other injuries that required him to be taken to Mercy Hospital, according to the Tribune account.
Edwards stands charged with battery and resisting arrest, the Tribune reports on the suit.
He uses the electric wheelchair because he is paralyzed and cannot use his legs, the newspaper reported.
