Allentown police have settled an excessive force lawsuit by a Bethlehem man whose 2014 arrest sparked controversy after cellphone video emerged showing officers kneeing and punching him as they handcuffed him on a city street.
Cristhian Ramirez will receive $25,000 to settle his claims that officers Johann Wesley Wilcox and Jose Lebron violated his civil rights by illegally arresting him and using excessive force to do so. He will share the settlement with his lawyers, according to the agreement.
Under terms of the Aug. 26 settlement, the city does not admit any wrongdoing and Ramirez gives up all claims he had against the city. The Morning Call obtained a copy of the settlement agreement Wednesday through a request under the Pennsylvania Right-to-Know Law.
City solicitor Susan Ellis Wild did not comment on the settlement. Ramirez’s attorney, Richard J. Orloski Sr., did not return a call.
Allentown police began an internal investigation after The Morning Call shared with police supervisors a video taken by a bystander that shows Ramirez, 34, being removed from a vehicle and an officer yelling in English, which Ramirez told the newspaper in 2014 he has trouble understanding.
A police spokesman did not respond to an inquiry about the findings of the internal investigation.
The video shows officers throwing Ramirez to the ground before he is kneed twice by one officer and punched by another as they try to put him in handcuffs. After Ramirez is cuffed, an officer appears to knee him a third time and throw him against a parked car.
The incident happened May 23, 2014, when police stopped a car in which Ramirez was a passenger after the driver committed a traffic violation, police said. During the stop, an officer saw Ramirez leaning over and reaching for his waistband. The officer pulled Ramirez from the car because of his furtive movements, police said.
Ramirez was released shortly after the incident, which occurred about 11:45 p.m. on Sixth Street between Hamilton and Linden streets, outside the former Minich jewelry store. The stop drew at least a half-dozen police cars, the video shows.
Ramirez, who did not file a complaint about the arrest before filing his lawsuit, was charged and convicted of disorderly conduct. A Lehigh County district judge ordered him to pay a fine and court costs after finding Ramirez created a risk by not complying with officers’ commands.
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