Lawsuit alleges Baltimore officer punched, tackled man

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Antonio Moore is seeking a combined $6 million in compensatory and punitive damages as a result of the incident, according to the complaint, filed last week in Baltimore City Circuit Court.

Moore was approached by Officer Brad Chenowith outside a North Howard Street residence Feb. 23 and ordered to walk down the street for no stated reason, the according to the lawsuit. Moore alleges he was complying with Chenowith’s request when Chenowith struck him in the chest with his hand.

Chenowith then punched Moore in the face and tackled him before handcuffing and arresting him, the complaint states.

The incident was caught on video and uploaded to YouTube, according to the complaint.

Moore’s attorneys learned of the video almost immediately after the incident, according to Latoya Francis-Williams, an attorney with the Law Offices of A. Dwight Pettit P.A. in Baltimore.

“It speaks for itself,” Francis-Williams, said of the video. “It contradicts what the officer said under oath.”

Moore was charged with second-degree assault and disorderly conduct, but prosecutors dropped the charges in May.

Chenowith has since been charged with assault, according to Francis-Williams, and the case is pending.

Chenowith is no longer with the Baltimore Police Department, according to a spokeswoman.

Moore suffered “physically, emotionally [and] financially and sustained injuries including but not limited to mental anguish, emotional distress and traumatic stress,” according to the complaint.

Francis-Williams said Moore is still dealing with physical injuries and continues to be disturbed about being attacked and abused by the criminal justice process.

Moore spent an extended period of time in police custody after his arrest and experienced humiliation, inconvenience and embarrassment as a result of the experience, according to the complaint.

The lawsuit seeks damages for assault, battery, false imprisonment, malicious prosecution and abuse of process, violation of the Maryland Declaration of Rights and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

The case is Antonio Moore v. Brad Chenowith, 24-C-15-004803.

The U.S. Department of Justice launched an inquiry into whether Baltimore police routinely use excessive force and participate in illegal arrests following the death of 25-year-old Freddie Gray in police custody in April. Gray’s death led to riots and civil unrest in the city; six officers were indicted and charged in connection with the incident.

The city reached a $6.4 million settlement with Gray’s family, which was approved unanimously earlier this month.

Prior to the settlement, the city had paid $4.5 million in police brutality settlements in fiscal years 2012 and 2013, with only 13 of those cases involved settlements for $100,000 or more.