A wounded officer has filed a lawsuit against the Black Lives Matter movement and some of its leaders for the 2016 ambush on a group of officers in Baton Rouge.
On July 17, 2016, two cops and a sheriff’s deputy were shot down dead, while two deputies and an officer were also wounded by gunman Gavin Long, a black military veteran.
The lawsuit, filed in the federal court in Louisiana, names Deray Mckesson, Johnetta Elzie, and three other Black Lives Matter leaders as defendants.
The suit filed last week claims that the BLM movement and its leaders were responsible for the attack because they “incited the violence against police in retaliation for the death of black men shot by police,” and “did nothing to dissuade the ongoing violence and injury to police.”
The complaint also points out that the BLM movement promotes violence.
“In fact, they justified the violence as necessary to the movement and war,” states the complaint. “By embracing and supporting violence in protest that could have been conducted peacefully, BLM declared a virtual war on police.”
The wounded officer that filed the complaint did not identify his name.
“The person who filed the lawsuit is named in the complaint only as Officer John Doe Smith. It says he is 42 with two children and is permanently disabled as a result of the numerous injuries he suffered in the ambush,” writes CNN.
“Smith, the complaint says, was shot through his abdomen, left shoulder and left side of his head. The shot to his abdomen “tore up his intestines,” requiring 16 surgeries and causing recurring infections. Medical staff must attend to the exit wound daily, it says.”
However, The Washington Times has spectated that the officer is the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Deputy Nicholas Tullier, who has been recovering Houston rehabilitation hospital since November.
According to the complaint by Officer John Doe Smith, most of his left ear was shot off and his skull was shattered causing him to lose some of his brain matter on the left side. The damage has caused his left eye to stay closed with the eyeball turned outward.
“John Doe Police Officer was strong and vibrant and he has been struggling every day, fighting to live, and fighting to get better,” states the complaint.
BLM leader Mckesson said the case has “no merit.”
“This is the second lawsuit an officer has filed against me from Baton Rouge. … I’m confident it has no merit,” said Mckesson to CNN.
But the lawsuit points out that Mckesson was in charge of a protest that turned into a riot following Alton Sterling, a black man who was shot by a Baton Rouge police officer on July 5. 200 people were arrested at protest in the Louisiana city that night.
Long, the shooter at the ambush, had spoken out and promoted using force against police officers in retaliation of African Americans being unfairly targeted just a week before he attacked the group of officers.
“Long had posted rambling internet videos calling for violence in response to police treatment of African-Americans, which he said constituted “oppression.” He apparently posted a YouTube video from Dallas on July 10, three days after a sniper killed five officers and wounded nine others there,” writes The Washington Times. “Long also left behind a note saying he believed he had to inflict harm “upon bad cops as well as good cops in hopes that the good cops (which are the majority) will be able to stand together and enact justice and punishment against bad cops.”
Author’s note: I have nothing against groups standing up for what they believe in. That’s the beauty of living in the land of the free. However, the BLM movement, in particular, is rooted in anger and hate. BLM protests often get violent and then incite individuals to fight back physically to police officers. This ultimately has made our communities less safe, especially those in rural and crime stricken areas because police officers are afraid to do their job.