Two Tulsa Police Officers are heading into a jury trial Monday morning in federal court as a result of a civil lawsuit alleging the officers illegally searched a man’s car and forced him to do pushups.
The lawsuit by Brian Lumpkin, 24, says Tulsa Police Officers James Bohanon and Kevin Warne were conducting surveillance at a house where they suspected drugs were sold on Oct. 25, 2010. They pulled Lumpkin’s car over after seeing him leave the house.
The home, near the 4800 block of South Mingo Road, was under surveillance for "short traffic," meaning multiple visitors throughout the day for a short period of time.
The lawsuit quotes officers it identifies as Bohanon and Warne from recorded radio traffic. It details an alleged conversation between Bohanon, who stopped Lumpkin, and Warne, who was parked farther away.
"Did you see that?" Bohanon asks while laughing, according to the lawsuit. "I told him, 'Hey, you're going to have to give me some pushups if you want to not get any tickets.'"
The lawsuit claims Warne and Bohanon violated Lumpkin's civil rights and that Bohanon used excessive force.
Judge John E. Dowdell later dismissed the claim of excessive force, but the two officers still face the alleged civil rights violation.
Bohanon, a Tulsa Police Officer for more than 11 years, has had three other lawsuits against him, alleging wrongful searches and other complaints.
One lawsuit was dismissed while two others were settled by the city -- $23,000 was paid in a 2007 case and $10,000 was paid in a 2012 case. Bohanon was one of several defendants in both cases.
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