Family Claims Police Brutality in Coon Rapids Medical Emergency
Victim was cuffed and held down by four officers
COON RAPIDS, Minn. - A metro family is accusing Coon Rapids police officers of using excessive force on a man who was suffering a medical emergency after returning home from his mother's funeral, but they aren't looking for money -- just an apology for how he was treated.
The victim in ths case needed medical attention for a heart condition, but instead he found himself being subdued by four officers.
Paramedics got to the scene first, but when neighbors called police fearing the commotion was a domestic argument, everything changed.
"When they see their dad laying down, not responding -- yes, they were screaming," said Bassam Ayoub, who was restrained by police.
Ayoub, who had open-heart surgery a number of years ago, needed medical attention for a heart condition combined with the overwhelming emotions of attending his mother's funeral had him feeling faint without his nitroglycerin pills on hand.
Ayoud's son told FOX 9 News his father was having a seizure, with his eyes rolling back into his head, when police went on the offensive.
"I was shaking to the extent -- I got so much power -- the dude can't even put my arm behind my back," Ayoub said.
Since he was in the middle of a seizure, he couldn't control his limbs -- and that led to a tragic misunderstanding that was hard to overcome. The more he appeared to resist, the more police tried to restrain him while family members got more and more upset.
"The cops are pushing his face down into the ground while his eyes are rolling back, and I'm standing there watching them, watching them hold him down," said Hanna Ayoud, the victim's daughter.
Ayoub says he has marks from handcuffs and bruises from being held down by at least four officers, and those facts are consistent with the police reports. He has since filed a complaint and was interviewed by Coon Rapids police, telling them he just wants an apology for how he was treated.
"Police are really at a disadvantage going into someone's home," said Neil Melton, executive director of Peace Officer Standards and Training.
Melton is in charge of the state agency that licenses officers. He says that while officers can train for situations like this, only experience can prepare them for the balancing act.
"It doesn't always work according to the script, and some people refuse to calm down," Melton said.
Yet, police say the situation was only made worse by the number of family members who refused to listen to their commands. The family insists they were just trying to give officers the information they needed to stop restraining Ayoub.
"When someone's having a seizure, you're not supposed to hold them down," said Bassam Ayoud, the victim's son. "That's what was happening. His arms were flailing because he was having a seizure."