Police officers can also commit various crimes like police brutality, torture, and false arrests. The law provides an equal right to all its citizens no matter if they are federal officers or ordinary civilians.
If the police officer makes a wrong decision by arresting an innocent person, they can be penalized, punished, transferred, and even lose their job in certain circumstances. Here are the legal ways a person arrested without proper evidence can fight back to clear their name.
Civil Rights case
Innocent victims who had been arrested by the police mistakenly or with former enmity can file a civil rights case against the department. Trained police brutality lawyers will handle the issue and ask for a motion to exclude evidence which will scrutinize every evidence used against the victim.
Attorneys.com is a great resource that can help you hire a legal counsel with ample experience in helping false arrest victims who suffer injustice at the hands of corrupt or misled officers. The firm's lawyers help the victims in every possible way to clear their name and get compensation for every mental and physical damage they have encountered.
A lawsuit claiming monetary compensation
Sometimes, the police seize the house or a person's vehicle, suddenly causing severe damage to specific properties or a cherished object. The victims can claim monetary compensation for their loss which occurred due to police brutality. In case of false arrests, they might not be able to attend their job for a certain period or might have missed out on specific opportunities.
The victims can claimmonetary compensation for such losses once they have proven their innocence. The police department should compensate them, and the particular officers who committed the brutal act by mistake or on purpose will get reprimanded.
Defamation case
Victims of false arrest can always file a defamation case if the police officer had intentionally arrested them, intending to tarnish their reputation. Such issues are common among high-level politicians who get arrested due to corruption claims and fraud.
They will file a defamation case against the police stating their political enemies were behind the false arrest and demand to get their name cleared from all the charges. Ordinary people accused falsely of rape, molestation or stealing also can file defamation cases to get their name removed from the bad reputation created due to negative publicity.
Legal proceedings regarding unwanted search
Unwanted seizure of property or an asset like a home or a car, unwanted raids, or search in the house which doesn't yield any specific result is a crime. Such activities get executed with the sole aim of arresting the victim. Hence, they can sue the police officer in charge.
The concerned officers and their team can be transferred or even suspended in dire cases where they carried the search without a proper warrant. The police officers cannot search the home of a rich or a poor person because of suspicion without appropriate cues and permission from their higher authorities.
False arrest lawsuit
The victims can file a false arrest lawsuit if they decide to complain against the officer who arrested them. The police department itself is liable to take the complaint and register a police report against a particular officer. It is commonly called thefalse arrest lawsuit.
The court proceedings will usually call for an injunction in favor of the victim and order to retrain the officers in most cases. The victim will be protected from further harassment by the particular officer or the department in all cases. If required, the court will pass a restraining order preventing the police from involving the victim further in the concerned issue.