Defense verdict for police officers

On September 27, 2021, partners Mel Lute and Andrea Ziarko defended two police officers in a case involving allegations of civil rights violations, excessive force and intentional infliction of emotional distress before a jury in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Judge Sarah Morrison presiding. The jury returned a verdict on Wednesday, September 29, 2021, in favor of the defendant police officers, unanimously rejecting the plaintiff’s constitutional claims as well as the plaintiff’s request for $1 million in compensatory and punitive damages. This was the first case involving defendant police officers tried by the firm since the national conversation regarding police use of force.