Abbas v. City of Hobart, et al

Case Background

Plaintiff Devonte Abbas filed a civil rights lawsuit against the Hobart Police Department for malicious prosecution. The case was filed in

Cause

On the morning of April 1, 2019, 26-year-old Devonte Abbas drove near the intersection of E. 37th Avenue and North Hobart Road in Hobart. Officer Richard Mayer from the Hobart Police Department noticed that Abbas did not signal while changing lanes.

Officer Mayer pulled Abbas over and exited his squad car to investigate. After Abbas handed over his driver’s license, Mayer returned to his car and radioed in Abbas’s identity. A preliminary warrant check revealed an active warrant for Abbas out of Florida for possession of marijuana. Headquarters needed time to verify the warrant, so Officer Mayer continued his investigation.

Standard procedure dictated that officers do not inform suspects of outstanding warrants until confirmed. Therefore, when Mayer returned Abbas’s license, he asked to search Abbas’s car.

Abbas refused the request. Mayer then stated that a K-9 officer was en route for a “sniff search.” Soon after, Officers Hayes and Trajkovski arrived, followed by Corporal Kenneth Williams and his K-9 partner, Officer “Mojo.”

The officers ordered Abbas to exit his vehicle. Abbas resisted, fearing the officers might conduct an illegal search or plant evidence. To protect himself, he began recording the encounter on his cell phone.

He believed he was not legally required to exit during what he considered a routine traffic stop. Despite the officers citing Supreme Court precedents, Abbas continued to refuse.

At one point, Corporal Williams reached through Abbas’s partially open window to unlock the door. Disputes arose over what happened next. Officers claimed Abbas raised the window, injuring Williams’s arm. Ultimately, they pulled Abbas from the car and handcuffed him.

After the arrest, Officer Mayer prepared a probable cause affidavit. Abbas faced charges of Battery Against a Public Safety Official and Resisting Law Enforcement. The case lingered for two and a half years. Eventually, the prosecutor dismissed the charges after reviewing Abbas’s video, which supported his account.

Injury

When officers threw him to the pavement, one officer placed a booted foot on his head, forcing his face into the concrete. He claimed the officers then struck him in the face multiple times, resulting in scrapes, bruises, and a head injury.

Damages

Abbas filed the lawsuit seeking both general and special compensation for the malicious prosecution and misdeeds committed against him by the Defendants. He sought accountability for the alleged physical harm and emotional distress he endured.

Key Arguments and Proceedings

Legal Representation

  • Plaintiff(s): Devonte Abbas
    • Counsel for Plaintiff(s): Steven P. Lammers
  • Defendant(s): City of Hobart | Richard Mayer | Kenneth Williams
    • Counsel for Defendant(s): Shaw R. Friedman | Laura M. Nirenberg | Jeremy M. Noel

Claims

Abbas filed a lawsuit against the City of Hobart and Officers Williams, Hayes, Mayer, and Trajkovski, claiming malicious prosecution. He alleged that the officers intentionally included false information in the probable cause affidavit to wrongfully prosecute him for crimes he did not commit.

When Abbas finally retrieved his cell phone from police custody, he found that the video he had recorded ended abruptly at the moment he was pulled from the car. The footage did not show the violence he experienced afterward. Since Abbas did not stop the recording himself, he believed the police deliberately cut off the video to hide their misconduct. Abbas maintained that the officers acted maliciously and unjustly during the encounter.

Defense

Defendants initially removed the case to federal court. However, the federal court determined that the removal was not timely filed, leading to the case being sent back to state court. The parties also agreed to dismiss Officers Hayes and Trajkovski from the case.

Litigation continued against the City of Hobart, Officer Mayer, and Corporal Williams based on the previously mentioned grounds. Their first strategy involved claiming immunity from prosecution. When the court dismissed that argument, the Defendants focused on the merits, asserting that they acted appropriately throughout the incident.

Specifically, the Defendants denied inserting false information into the probable cause affidavit. Corporal Williams genuinely believed that Abbas had raised the window on his arm, and Officer Mayer shared that belief. The fact that both men were later proven mistaken did not mean they lied. Instead, it represented an honest mistake resulting from the chaos of the moment.

The Defendants maintained that their actions were justified, arguing that they followed proper procedures during the arrest. They emphasized that any errors were unintentional and occurred under difficult circumstances.

Jury Verdict

The case was tried for four days in East Chicago. On February 29, 2024, the jury reached a verdict in favor of the City of Hobart, Corporal Williams, and Officer Mayer. Consequently, the court issued a defense judgment. Following the trial, Abbas’s legal counsel withdrew from the case.

Abbas then filed a pro se motion, arguing that the verdict contradicted the weight of the evidence. He believed the jury’s decision did not accurately reflect the facts presented during the trial. However, the court ultimately denied his motion.

Court Documents:

Available upon request