Man beaten by law enforcement in Wake County files complaint against state

Attorneys have filed a complaint on behalf of a 29-year-old man who was beaten in April by two North Carolina Highway Patrol troopers and a Wake County sheriff’s deputy.

The civil complaint, filed Tuesday morning with the state’s industrial commission, claims that the state Department of Public Safety was responsible for “multiple violations” on April 3. That night, troopers Michael G. Blake and Tabithia L. Davis took part in the beating of Kyron Dwain Hinton on North Raleigh Boulevard near Yonkers Road.

The complaint, first reported by ABC11, The News & Observer’s media partner, alleges violations including gross negligence, negligent supervision and negligent infliction of emotional distress. Hinton has said he suffered a broken nose, fractured eye socket and about 20 dog bites from a sheriff’s office canine.

The complaint claims that Blake “repeatedly kicked and punched” Hinton and ordered Davis to use a flashlight to hit Hinton in the head.

“Hit that f***ing noggin now,” the attorneys allege Blake told Davis during the beating. “Hit his noggin now with the f***ing flashlight.”

Davis repeatedly struck Hinton in the head with the flashlight “to the point that it became covered in” Hinton’s blood, the lawyers stated.

Hinton has said he was walking home that night after losing his money at a sweepstakes parlor. Several people called 911 around 10:30 p.m. to report that he was standing in the middle of the road, Some said he had a gun, although he was unarmed.

Blake and Davis were fired following a probe by the State Bureau of Investigation. Both face felony charges in the case.

The sheriff’s deputy, Cameron B. Broadwell, was not named in the complaint. Broadwell, who also faces criminal charges, has been placed on administrative duties.

A supervising state trooper, Sgt. R.W. Goswick, was also placed on administrative leave after he was seen and heard on video and audio instructing Blake and Davis to not mention the use of force against Hinton.

The complaint claims that Davis and Blake breached their duties by failing to detain Hinton in a manner that minimized his injuries and failed to use a reasonable amount of force during the his arrest.

Hinton’s lawyers claim that the Highway Patrol knew Blake had a “propensity to engage in misconduct.” Blake was suspended for using excessive force in 2015, and he was the subject of a complaint in 2016 when he was accused of using excessive force during a traffic stop near Apex. The motorist in that case was hospitalized for six days.

The lawyers also pointed out that Blake was accused of using excessive force against another motorist, in Raleigh, a week before Hinton was beaten.

The night of the Hinton beating, State Trooper Zachary Bumgardner was the first to arrive at Raleigh Boulevard. Hinton’s lawyers said in the complaint that although Hinton was “yelling religious references and incoherent statements, he did not engage or direct any conduct” toward the trooper.

Three Raleigh police officers arrived and formed a perimeter around Hinton, who “did not direct any verbal or physical behavior,” according to the complaint.

Blake, Davis and Broadwell arrived at the scene at about 10:38 p.m.

Broadwell “quickly retrieved his canine Loki from his vehicle and began to approach Hinton,” the complaint says.

The lawyers say Broadwell “immediately escalated the situation” by telling Hinton to get on the ground. Broadwell then unleashed the dog.

Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said evidence showed that the Raleigh police officers did not use excessive force.

The five-count complaint seeks compensatory damages for an amount to be determined by a jury.

This story was originally published July 24, 2018 at 2:21 PM.