Man sues Anchorage municipality, police officers in connection with 2019 alleged assault

A man is suing the Municipality of Anchorage and two police officers in federal court for violating his civil rights.

The lawsuit, brought by Anchorage resident Sam Allen, stems from an incident in 2019 when he was allegedly assaulted by Anchorage Police Department Officer Cornelius Aaron Pettus while he was being cited for a bicycle violation.

The lawsuit against the municipality and Pettus was filed Thursday in U.S. District Court. It also names Officer Deorman Levi Stout, who was present during Pettus’ alleged assault of Allen.

Allen is seeking a judgment of more than $100,000, to be determined by a jury, the lawsuit says.

Pettus currently faces a federal felony charge of deprivation of civil rights under color of law for the alleged assault. He pleaded not guilty to multiple criminal charges in state court, including two misdemeanor assault charges, two counts of tampering with public records and one count of interference with constitutional rights. The cases are still underway and he has not been convicted.

Pettus is on unpaid administrative leave, according to APD, and Stout has been back on duty since March 31.

On Sept. 30, 2019, Pettus and Stout had encountered Allen biking and stopped him, noting that he was biking without lights or reflectors at night, according to charges. Allen rode away after the officers stopped him. Allen recorded the encounter on his phone and uploaded it to his YouTube account. Pettus and Stout then went to Allen’s home and gave him several citations related to the biking encounter, according to charges.

Allen used his cellphone to record the incident that followed. The video footage differed significantly from Pettus’ police report, according to the assault charges against Pettus.

The lawsuit alleges that Pettus punched Allen in his jaw, kicked at his groin, threatened him by saying “what’s up, what’s up, you want some more?” and that he pepper sprayed Allen before taking him to the ground and handcuffing him.

The lawsuit accuses the officers of unlawfully arresting Allen for assault, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest and then holding him in jail for several days.

The suit also alleges that the municipality is liable for the actions of the officers. It says the municipality “breached its duty of reasonable care” to Allen by “negligently and/or gross negligently and/or recklessly failing to reasonably hire and/or train and/or supervise and/or retain” Pettus and Stout.

The city also failed to “promptly and/or reasonably investigate the plaintiff’s report of Officer Pettus punching him,” the lawsuit says.

The municipality’s breach of duty is a substantial factor that caused harm to Allen, the suit alleges.

Allen first filed the lawsuit against the city and officers in Alaska superior court in April. The municipality requested that the lawsuit be litigated in U.S. District Court, according to Jeff Barber, Allen’s attorney.

Federal court also has jurisdiction because the lawsuit includes claims based on federal statute, Barber said.

In an email, Kate Vogel, an attorney for the municipality, said, “It is possible the case may be stayed pending resolution of the criminal charges, as that is sometimes done in cases where one defendant has pending criminal charges.”

If the case is not stayed, “it would be normal for cases of this type to take at least 18 months to resolve,” Vogel said.

The municipality declined to comment further on the case.