Johnson County jury rules in favor of officers, deputies named in 2009 lawsuit

IOWA CITY - A Johnson County jury has sided with law enforcement in an six-year-old use of force lawsuit.

According to court records, on Tuesday, the jury ruled in favor of two Johnson County Sheriff's deputies and four North Liberty police officers who were sued in 2009. The jury did not award the plaintiff, Joshua Thomas, any damages.

Thomas' attorney, Martin Diaz, could not be reached for comment on Wednesday.

'We knew all along that our deputies acted appropriately, followed their training and responded appropriately,” said Johnson County Sheriff Lonny Pulkrabek. 'We pride ourselves in training in how we deal with people.”

The lawsuit stemmed from a 2007 incident at North Liberty Family Fun Days. Thomas alleged in his 2009 lawsuit that a fight broke out at the festival's concert and he tried to break it up. When he did, Thomas said he was grabbed, stunned with a Taser, handcuffed and arrested by the officers and deputies - one of whom is a Johnson County reserve deputy. Thomas said the use of a Taser was unnecessary and caused him continued pain and muscle and ligament damage.

Thomas sued for assault, battery, false arrest and malicious prosecution.

Thomas was originally charged with disorderly conduct, which was dropped before trial, and interference with official acts, of which he was later acquitted.

The case was originally tossed by the District Court, which found the officers could not be sued because they were acting on behalf of the state in an official capacity. However, in a 2013 ruling, the Appeals Court of Iowa reversed that decision and reinstated the lawsuit.

North Liberty Police Chief Diane Venenga said Taser use practices have changed in the last eight years, but that's more of a result of evolving best practices, rather than Thomas' lawsuit.

'We are relieved and, of course, happy with the jury's decision,” Venenga said.

Pulkrabek said sometimes law enforcement must 'meet force with force.” He said this was one of those occasions.

'We had a lot of faith in our deputies that they acted appropriately,” he said. 'They responded with the amount of force that was necessary.”