Albany police said they were responding to a noise complaint when they broke into a home without a warrant and began pepper spraying and beating the people inside before stepping outside and attacking two men with fists and a baton on March 16.
The entire altercation was so egregious that as soon as the bodycam video was reviewed by the police chief, felony charges of inciting a riot against three men arrested were dropped and felony assault charges were filed against Albany police officer Luke Deer.
Now two men of the men arrested on false charges, Armando Sanchez and Mario Gorostiza, have each filed federal lawsuits against the department for an unspecified amount of damages. Read the lawsuits here and here.
The video shows a cop named Matthew Seeber kicking in a door after being refused to be let in and pepper spraying a man inside. The man inside, Lee Childs was also arrested but has not yet filed a lawsuit.
The video also shows Deer charging towards Sanchez who had his hands up, proceeding to punch and beat him with a baton. Deer is charged with misdemeanor official misconduct in addition to the felony assault charge.
Seeber has not been charged for home invasion as he probably should be but it was only last year he was charged with battery after punching a man in a Nashville bar who had asked him to leave. But charges were dismissed a month later.
Deer’s violent attack was so over the top that a supervisor can be heard on camera telling him to, “Chill the fuck out, Deer!”
