The family of a San Francisco Black man who was tased while he was struggling in the water is now filing a federal civil rights lawsuit against the officers involved.
In April, Deontae Faison was at Martin Luther King Jr. Regional Shoreline Park in Oakland, Calif. with a good friend of his. While the two were minding their business, an East Bay Park District officer allegedly approached the duo about Faison driving with expired tags.
This led the 35-year-old to lie about his name since he felt he was being treated unfairly compared to his white friend, according to ABC7 San Francisco. Things started to escalate once more officers arrived at the scene, which led to Faison trying to flee the scene. Once he got close to the water, an officer pointed a Taser at him and allegedly hit him in the back.
Watch the bodycam footage of the incident below:
In their lawsuit, Faison’s family alleges that he was in the water for more than half an hour, and officers on the scene refused to call emergency services for assistance, did not take any witness statements, lied about Faison having a weapon on him, turned off their body-camera audio and got rid of all of his clothes.
The suit also argues that tasing someone while they’re in the water is against district policy.
More from ABC7 San Francisco:
“The level of disregard and callousness the officers showed as they comfortably stood by and watched Deontae call out for help while flailing his arms in a desperate bid to avoid drowning is unforgivable,” said civil rights attorney Jamir Davis, of J. Davis Law Firm, PLLC. “Deontae’s family will not rest until these officers are held accountable.”
To this day, Faison, who also has two children, is still unresponsive at a hospital, according to The San Francisco Standard.