Riverdale man sues police, alleges excessive force in February arrest

RIVERDALE, Ill. - Two suburban police officers have been named in a federal lawsuit, accused of excessive force.

A Riverdale man says he needed several surgeries after a run-in with police earlier this year. He claims he was elbowed, kneed, and punched, leading to a fractured nose and other injuries.

The incident unfolded on Feb. 5. Attorneys for Abraham Carmichael shared dashcam video they obtained with FOX 32.

Carmichael, who is now suing the two officers and the Village of Riverdale, says he was getting work done on his car in an alley when police approached. Attorneys for Carmichael say the officers were looking for someone else, unrelated, and even detained that person. But in the lawsuit, they claim their client was then unjustly—and without cause—brought into the ordeal. They say he was pushed toward the hood of a squad car, where things escalated.

"When the cops showed up, they were looking for a specific person in a specific car. They found that and confirmed it within seconds. For no reason, they dragged Mr. Carmichael into this," said Evan Finneke, attorney from C. Norris Law Group.

"I thought I was going to lose my life," Carmichael added. "I looked up and I felt something running down my face, and it was blood. I saw blood all over the hood of the car and thought, what is going on?"

Carmichael was initially charged with resisting arrest, but his attorneys say those charges were dropped.

FOX 32 has reached out to the Riverdale Police Department for a response to the lawsuit but has not yet heard back.