BALTIMORE, MD (WBAL/CNN) – A police officer in Maryland is caught on camera punching a man after exchanging words. However, it’s the man who was charged with assault. “It was a very vicious attack that was uncalled and unwarranted,” said Ivan Bates. Attorneys Ivan Bates and Tony Garcia announce a seven count lawsuit against Baltimore police officer Vincent Cosom Monday. Bates and Garcia claim their client, 32-year-old Kollin Truss, is the victim of police brutality and the alleged attack was all caught on police surveillance video. According to charging documents back on June 15, officer Cosom says he saw an intoxicated Truss loitering in front of a liquor store at Greenmount and North avenues and told him to move. The two exchanged words and Truss went into the liquor store to make a purchase. When Truss came out, a female friend of his is seen on the video pushing him away from officers as more words are exchanged. Eventually Truss is backed into a nearby bus stop and all of a sudden, Truss’ attorneys say, officer Cosom comes out of nowhere and hits Truss several times. Truss is eventually arrested and charged with assaulting an officer. “There’s a pattern here, first these officers are stripping clients of their dignity, their rights, then charging with an assault that they themselves have perpetrated it’s the same pattern, stripped of rights and forced him to submit, this is not Baltimore justice it’s Baltimore horror,” Garcia said. Truss’ attorneys say that their client is the victim and that officer Cosom lied on his police report about fearing for his life when it was their client who was in danger. They also claim a police cover-up as they say charges were immediately dropped once the state’s attorney’s office saw the video. “There was a video from the Citywatch camera, meaning the BPD was manning the camera, watched the vicious assault on our client and then said absolutely nothing at all,” Bates said. Truss’ attorneys say they are hoping for a settlement in the case and a full police investigation. “Now there a number of good Baltimore Police officers however the ones that are vicious and violent and that are terrorizing the community they need to go,” Bates said.
Source WBAL/CNN KHON 2
http://khon2.com/2014/09/15/maryland-police-officer-punches-man-charges-him-with-assault/
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