ROCKFORD, Mich. — A little over two years ago, Thurman King was on his way home from work when a cop started to follow him.
Within a matter of minutes, King would be thrown to the ground by police, handcuffed and eventually taken to jail on charges that a prosecuting attorney would dismiss "in the interest of justice," months later.
"All it takes is a falsified police report and you find yourself in essence fighting for your life," King, 55, said.
"It affects you financially, emotionally... it shouldn't happen to anybody."
King, who is Black, was arrested in the driveway of his home in Rockford, a predominately white suburb.
Officer Zachary Abbate said he was pulling King over for his license plate light being out and for running a stop sign, but Abbate's dash camera video showed King stop.
Attorney Stephen Drew said incidents like this "generally don't happen in a vacuum."
Drew filed a federal lawsuit on King's behalf last month against the city, its police department and the two officers who arrested him.
"It's very troubling that an officer is willing to put in writing in a police report something that by video evidence is absolutely false," Drew said.
"That can be due to a culture, and if it is due to the culture of the Rockford Police Department, then we would expect some accountability, but we'll just have to see."
The lawsuit alleges that Rockford officers falsely arrested and unlawfully jailed King stemming from an unlawful traffic stop. The city and police department are named for their allowance of "improper stops and stops based on racial profiling," among other things.
The city declined an interview, but a spokesperson said the city disagrees with the claims made in the lawsuit.
The traffic stop
It was nearly 11 p.m. on March 20, 2019, as King made the drive home from work.
Abbate, who is white, followed him for several blocks, which can be seen in his dash camera video.
"As I approached my home, he activated his lights. So, I immediately became concerned because I knew I hadn't done anything wrong," King said.
King pulled into his driveway, fearful of the officers intent.
"I wanted to get somewhere safe," he said.
King said one of the first things Abbate said was that he knew who King was.
When Abbate said he was pulling King over for not stopping at the stop sign, King said he became more fearful.
"I know I hadn't run the stop sign, and so I'm extra scared now. So, I started calling for my fiancée, in the house, you know, yelling for her," King recalls.
"Within seconds, I'm on the ground."
Video shows Abbate force King to the ground. A second officer, Jason Bradley, cannot be seen on camera, but according to the lawsuit, both officers detained King.
At several points King tells the officers "I can't breathe," to which one replies, "if you're talking, you're breathing, pal."
King was unable to speak to his fiancé before he was taken to jail, where he'd spend the next 14 hours. According to the lawsuit, King had multiple injuries from the officers, including to his head and neck.
He faced three charges, including a felony for resisting and obstructing an officer.
"They built up some charges to justify the lie that [Abbate] told to stop him in the first place," Drew said. "That needs to be addressed."
'Constant reminders'
Several months later, a Kent County prosecuting attorney dismissed all the charges against King after reviewing the evidence.
"After he had been put in jail for 14 hours. After he had to hire an attorney. After he had to go through all of that and the embarrassment, the mug shots," Drew said.
King says what he went through that night continues to impact him. The arrest in some ways took away his dignity, he said.
"It has taken its toll on me, but by the grace of God, I'm still standing," King said.
King says hearing about the deaths of George Floyd and Daunte Wright at the hands of Minnesota police officers, instantly causes him to relive his arrest.
He changed his work hours to avoid driving home at night.
"You're trying to continue to live and not let it affect you, but it does, you know, it's something that stays with you," King said.
"That's the driveway I have to pull in every day, so I've got constant reminders," he said.
Without video of the incident, Drew said it's possible King would've faced jail time and had to take a plea deal to avoid going to trial.
"They would have taken the word of the officer because we do, and we should. When they're telling the truth," he said.
What happened to King is something many Black people face while driving, Drew says accountability has to be established to stop it.
"If this were a 55-year-old white man coming home from work in Rockford, would there have been a difference? Would they have been stopped for something they didn't do? And if stopped, would it have been handled any differently?" Drew said.
"We want fair policing. We want policing that stops crime that doesn't try to make crimes or make up crimes, so you have something to do."
A public relations firm for the city of Rockford issued the following statement:
While we do not intend to try this case in the court of public opinion, we disagree strongly with the claims as presented here. We intend to present a vigorous defense in this matter.
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