“A man who says he was assaulted by Allegheny County Jail corrections officers has filed a federal lawsuit alleging ‘egregious and unchecked overuse of force’ at the facility that violated his constitutional rights.

In a complaint filed last week in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, Jerrod Palmer alleged jail guards beat him while he was restrained, ‘without any penological justification.’ He also accused officers of using excessive force against him because he showed symptoms of psychiatric disabilities including bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, anxiety, and PTSD, in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The suit names former warden Orlando Harper and former interim warden Shane Dady, as well as several top deputies and 10 corrections officers as defendants. Palmer argued jail administrators failed to adequately train, supervise, and discipline corrections officers, resulting in ‘the rampant use of unlawful and unconstitutional force on people incarcerated at ACJ.’

According to the complaint, Palmer was in custody facing a misdemeanor charge for illegal possession of a controlled substance, just two days shy of his scheduled release date, when he accepted donated clothing from a commissary worker.

The filing alleges corrections officers saw the exchange and did not intervene, but later handcuffed Palmer, searched his cell and confiscated the clothes and $2 he had found. Palmer responded by ‘uncontrollably’ shouting at the guards and yelling “that he had not done anything wrong.” The suit claims officers then threw him to the floor and punched and kicked Palmer, chipping a tooth and leaving visible bruises and his mouth bloody.'”

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