LAWRENCE, KAN. (AP) — A man wounded by a rookie Kansas police officer who mistakenly drew her gun instead of her Taser has been unable to find her to serve her with an excessive force lawsuit.
Akira Lewis's attorney, Shaye Downing, said in a court filing that she has sought assistance from law enforcement, a process service company and a private investigator to locate former Lawrence Officer Brindley Blood, who shot Lewis in May 2018. The court will decide whether to approve serving Blood through newspaper publication, the Lawrence Journal-World reports.
An aggravated battery charge against Blood was dropped last March. An affidavit in the case said Blood intended to stun Lewis but instead shot him him as he fought with another officer. The confrontation started after Lewis refused to get out of his car when he was pulled over for a suspected seat-belt violation.
Lewis, who is black, contended that the stop was racially motivated. Blood and the other officer are both white. Lewis has been sentenced to a year of probation after pleading no contest to battery of a law enforcement officer.
Other defendants include in the city, which the lawsuit accuses of failing to provide proper training. The city attorney has declined to comment.