SAN FRANCISCO - Marin County and two Marin police officers were named in a federal lawsuit after the officers allegedly assaulted a disabled pizza delivery man.
The suit was filed on April 21 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California by plaintiff Kevin Kylce, a 60-year-old man with Cerebral Palsy.
According to the complaint, Klyce was leaving a home where he had just delivered a pizza on September 18, 2019.
Klyce says he had trouble getting the homeowner's attention; after knocking several times on the door to inform the resident his pizza had arrived, the plaintiff walked around to the side of the home to try to get the homeowner to see him and answer the door.
Defendant officers Joshua Hamilton and Kevin Sinnott were responding to a 911 call about a possible break-in and saw Klyca walking away from the home back towards his car.
Despite his obvious limp due to his disability and the pizza bag in his hand, Klyce says the officers immediately drew their firearms and exited their vehicles, ordering the plaintiff to lay on the ground and then ordering him get up and walk backwards towards the officers.
Sinnott then suddenly performed a leg sweep on Klyce, according to the complaint, sending the plaintiff face-first into the pavement, and knelt with his knee on the plaintiff's spine.
Klyce says that the officers' force exacerbated his existing disability and he now relies on a walker to ambulate.
The defendants are charged with excessive force, unlawful seizure and Americans with Disabilities Act violation.
The plaintiff is represented by Pointer and Buelna LLP.