ST. LOUIS (Legal Newsline) – Defendants in a lawsuit accusing them of using too much mace on detainees at St. Louis’ City Justice Center have lost their effort to have any trial split into separate proceedings.
Defendants like the City of St. Louis and multiple individual officers wanted separate trials for each of them, but federal judge Henry Edward Autrey on May 19 said no.
“Plaintiffs’ claims raise out of the same series of transactions or occurrences and meet the requisites for joinder under Rule 20(a),” he wrote. “(T)he court is doubtful that the facts presented in this case would be so confusing that the jury would misconceive the issues at hand.
“To bifurcate would cause considerable inconvenience, and it would not expedite or economize the flow of the case.”
According to the complaint, on December 14, 2020, while detained in the St. Louis City Justice Center, Derrick Jones was maced in the face without provocation and was told to "marinate."
In February, Jerome Jones was allegedly placed in a small, secure visiting room when jail staff sprayed the room with excessive amounts of mace, leaving Jerome in the mace-filled room, asking for help and shouting that he could not breathe, for nearly half an hour.
Also in February, Darnell Rusan allegedly received the same type of treatment, when he was locked for hours, fully nude, in a room filled with mace.
The three plaintiffs allege these are just specific examples of how often correctional officers are using mace in an abusive manner. Plaintiffs allege that instances with correctional officers happen daily where they use excessive mace without warning.
Plaintiffs allege that correctional officers have been noted to carry around riot-size mace and use it in small confined rooms, often leaving the detainees unable to breathe and being refused medical treatment. According to the complaint, one detainee was maced while having a seizure.
But there were no significant injuries, the defendants said in a motion to dismiss last year that was partly granted. Derrick Jones was able to wash his face and eyes off and experienced “some burning” on his skin due to mace residue on his clothing, St. Louis argues.
As for Jerome Jones, he “admits that he was sprayed… when he repeatedly refused to cooperate” with directions, the motion says, leaving the officer in a position that require some “use of force to compel Jerome Jones’ obedience.”
Rusan, whose incident occurred during a period of frequent inmate riots and was indicted for beating one officer, and also throwing a chair at her.
“As pled, Lt. Turner and Officer Lewis sprayed Darnell Rusan while he was outside his cell near the phones in the housing unit. Rusan himself admits he picked up a chair, which is corroborated by the charging documents in his pending criminal case,” the motion says.
“He experienced, merely burning, eyes and skin attributable to the pepper spray, used by Turner and Lewis. This, in light of the fact that he was charged for placing Lt. Turner in apprehension of immediate physical injury, and in fact causing physical injury to Officer Lewis, allows the Court to conclude that his injuries were merely de minimis and the use of force was reasonable under the circumstances.”