Saying federal prosecutors have had enough opportunities to convict a Madison, Alabama police officer for his treatment of a grandfather from India, a judge has thrown out the case against Eric Parker, reports AL.Com.
The bottom line-there will be no third trial.
Twice juries have deadlocked on whether Parker willfully denied 57-year-old Sureshbahi Patel of his right to be free of excessive force. Parker was accused of using a leg sweep to send Patel into the concrete, leaving him with spinal cord injuries.
Parker still faces a state charge of misdemeanor assault which carries a jail term of one year.
“Mr. Patel had—and has—just as much right to be free from excessive force as every citizen of this country. He is welcome here, and it is appropriate to grieve his injury,” wrote Judge Madeline Hughes Haikala in her decision.
“However, that injury, standing alone, does not provide the basis for a criminal judgment against Mr. Parker under 18 U.S.C. § 242.”
You can read an in-depth analysis of Haikala’s decision in AL.Com.