Sureshbhai Patel, a 57-Year-Old Grandfather Assaulted by Police and Now Partially Paralysed

The story of Sureshbhai Patel: a 57-year-old man from Gujarat who came to Madison, Alabama, to help his son's family with a premature baby.

On the morning of February 6, 2015, he went for a walk in the neighborhood. A neighbor called 911 and described him to the dispatcher as a "skinny black guy" wandering in the neighborhood — adding that he was afraid to leave his wife alone because the man looked dangerous.

Officers responded. Sureshbhai did not understand the English instructions the officers gave him, and Officer Eric Parker slammed him face-first into the ground — a takedown captured on the patrol-car camera. The injury left the grandfather partially paralyzed.

Prosecutors charged Parker with violating Patel's civil rights. The first trial, in September 2015, ended in a mistrial because the twelve-person jury could not reach a unanimous verdict. Prosecutor Robert Posey said the government would retry the case: "We plan to re-try the case and so another jury will get a chance to see this evidence and hear the testimony. We will let them decide."

Update: Prosecutors pursued a retrial after the September mistrial. Parker was ultimately acquitted by U.S. District Judge Madeline Haikala in a January 2016 bench trial. The city of Madison later settled Patel's civil lawsuit for $1.75 million.

Watch the video of the police encounter:

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9Vgqe0SBLM[/youtube]