WMC-TV: News, Weather, Traffic, Radar, and Sports for Memphis, TN; WMCTV.com | Lawsuits claim violent 2005 run-in with embattled MPD officer
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Memphis Police Officer Bridges McReaA local family claims they had a violent run-in with the same officer involved in the jailhouse beat down case, though their lawsuits were later dismissed.
Action News 5 was the first to show you video of a violent encounter between a Memphis police officer and a transgendered woman in the intake area of the Shelby County Criminal Justice Center. It was last February when surveillance cameras rolled as Memphis Police Officer Bridges McRae repeatedly struck suspected transgendered prostitute Duanna Johnson.
Last week, Johnson's lawyers said they plan to file a lawsuit over the incident. Action News 5 has learned it won't be the first lawsuit against McRae.
According to a lawsuit filed in federal court, on December 19, 2005, a truck driver named Kirby Lloyd arrived home and parked his tractor trailer in his mother's back yard on East Brooks. Lloyd started his other car, a 1994 Mazda, and went inside to greet his mother.
(Click here to read the lawsuit filed by Lloyd.)
When he went back outside, the lawsuit claims Lloyd was "accosted" by two Memphis police officers, including Bridges McRea. Lloyd claims he was slammed onto his mother's driveway with excessive force, and arrested for a "fictitious offence." In the lawsuit, Lloyd claimed said his civil rights were violated, and sued for $300,000 to compensate for medical bills and lost wages caused by his injuries.
Lloyd's sister, Kim Merrell, was also arrested that night. She filed suit as well, also asking for $300,000. (Click here to read the lawsuit filed by Merrell.)
A judge dismissed both suits last summer, and both cases are now on appeal.
In the Lloyd case, the Memphis City Attorney's office represented McRea, the other officer, the city, and the mayor.
At the time this story was posted, calls to the City Attorney's office Monday had not been returned.
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