Roughed-up driver sues Baltimore County police

A Baltimore man mistaken by Baltimore County police for a car thief has sued the police for $850,000.   

Aaron Clark paid about $2,000 in medical bills after suffering injuries, according to his lawsuit filed in Baltimore County Circuit Court. “He was pretty much waiting for an apology, and he never got it,” said Clark’s attorney, C. Stephen Basinger.  

According to the lawsuit, three police cars surrounded Clark’s and forced it into a curb on Old Court Road. An officer pulled Clark from the car, threw him to the ground on top of a flashlight and put his knee in his spine. Clark’s car drifted into another officer’s vehicle, causing $1,000 in damage to Clark’s.   

Officers accused Clark of being a felon with an open arrest warrant — which wasn’t true, according to the lawsuit. Ten to 20 minutes later, police told Clark he’d been stopped for driving a stolen car. Eventually, after Clark was allowed to show his driver’s license, registration and vehicle title, police let him go. 

— The Examiner