RISE Houston Member, CRC, Files Lawsuit Alleging HPD Racially Profiled and Hogtied A Hispanic Man
Diagram of human being who has been hogtied on the left; a picture of Mr. Ramos on the right.
On July 10th, 2023, Civil Rights Corps—a member of the RISE Houston steering committee—filed a lawsuit against 11 Houston Police Department (“HPD”) officers on behalf of Houston resident Alberto Ramos.
The complaint alleges that defendant HPD officers Scott Erwin, Jennifer Gilbreath, Hallie Smith, Fredrick Morrison, and Gino Dago racially profiled, hogtied, and arrested Mr. Ramos without probable cause, and in violation of his constitutional rights.
For 28 years, the Department of Justice has warned police departments that hogtying can be a deadly maneuver when used on vulnerable people. Between 2010 and 2021, 23 people died as a result of being hogtied by police.
According to the complaint, a 911 dispatcher alerted defendant Erwin of an alleged assault perpetrator who was only described as “Hispanic” and “male” with no other physical descriptors like height, weight, hair color, tattoos, or clothing.
Houston has a large Hispanic population, with 44.5% of Houstonians - or over 1 million people - identifying as Hispanic or Latino. The complaint alleges that defendant Erwin saw Mr. Ramos, who is a Hispanic male, on a public sidewalk. The complaint alleges that defendants Erwin and Gilbreath grabbed Mr. Ramos’ arm and tackled him to the ground within seconds of approaching him and without asking any investigative questions. The complaint details defendant officers Dago, Smith, and Morrison securing Mr. Ramos in an HPD vehicle, pulling Mr. Ramos back out of the vehicle, laying him prone on the concrete, and hogtying him. The complaint alleges that defendant officers made several comments on the scene and in subsequent reports that they thought Mr. Ramos was physically and mentally vulnerable. According to the complaint, Mr. Ramos had trouble breathing while hogtied and needed to be hospitalized for his injuries.
Kiah Duggins, an attorney at Civil Rights Corps and a member of the RISE Houston coalition, explained:
“It is unacceptable, especially in a city with such a large Hispanic population, that HPD officers stopped Mr. Ramos because he fit a barebones description of being Hispanic and male. HPD officers’ subsequent unconscionable decision to hogtie Mr. Ramos in the street raises urgent questions about HPD’s ability to keep Houstonians safe.”
Ryan Downer, CRC’s Director of Litigation added: “Police cannot stop someone on a public street and put them in handcuffs without good reason. And even if they have a good reason, they can’t use excessive force. But all too often, that’s exactly what happens. It’s just not acceptable–that’s what this case is about.”
Katya Abazajian, another member of the RISE Houston Coalition said:
"Houston thrives because of its Latinx communities, yet HPD's violence against Latinx men is common and consistent. As a Latina organizer and a resident of Montrose where this occurred, I think it's essential that we share Mr. Ramos's story along with others' like Nicholas Chavez who was killed by HPD during a mental health crisis in 2020."
The lawsuit is seeking a declaration that the defendant officers violated Mr. Ramos’ constitutional rights, compensatory damages, and punitive damages.
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About Civil Rights Corps
Civil Rights Corps is a non-profit organization dedicated to challenging systemic injustice in the American legal system through innovative civil rights litigation.
Website: https://civilrightscorps.org/
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