Nation - Judge rules in lawsuit against cops Excessive force still a question

By Kathy McCormack Associated Press Writer CONCORD, N.H. (AP) -- A federal judge has dismissed part of a lawsuit filed by a Bristol family alleging police violated their rights during a search of their home. Judge Joseph Laplante ruled that police had a right to enter and detain them but that a jury could conclude the family was subjected to excessive force. The ruling Friday removed the town of Bristol and a number of police officers from the lawsuit. Some counts against several officers were allowed to stand. The Mlodzinski family sued in 2008, saying local and special operations unit officers handcuffed them for nearly an hour while interrogating them about a relative who had just been arrested and removed from the home on an assault charge. The family -- a couple and their 15-year-old daughter -- also said the police pointed assault weapons at them. They say the actions were in violation of their Fourth Amendment rights. The family says the teen, as a result of being shoved to the floor by an officer, suffered a knee injury and has undergone at least two surgeries. Police dispute the time the family was handcuffed and said they held their weapons pointed toward the floor. They said their actions were justified. Police had warrants to enter the apartment and arrest then-17-year-old Michael Rothman, who had been accused of beating up another man with a nightstick, and they believed Rothman might have a gun. Rothman, who did not resist arrest, later pleaded guilty to reduced charges. Laplante said police had a right to detain and question the Mlodzinskis. He said, though, that they were outnumbered by police and did not resist arrest or attempt to flee. The family did not challenge the police entry itself. Laplante wrote, however, that while he was reluctant to second-guess the tactical decisions of law enforcement officers, he was concerned over the use of the special operations unit to send as many as 10 armed officers into the apartment after breaking down the door with a battering ram. Published: Tue, Jul 20, 2010

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