Evanston Man Accuses Police Of False Arrest, Excessive Force

EVANSTON, IL — An Evanston man has updated his federal lawsuit against the city and two police officers stemming from his arrest.

Ronald Louden, 42, was shocked with a stun gun during a struggle with police during a June 2018 arrest in the 2000 block of Wesley Avenue.

According to his lawsuit, Louden was outside grilling for family and friends when he was approached by police. Police say he they were investigating a tip he was dealing drugs and had a gun.

In an amended complaint filed last week, Louden alleges the arresting officers used excessive force, falsely arrested him and conspired to violate his constitutional rights in an incident that was captured on their body-worn cameras.

Police released bodycam videos from seven officers showing the intial encounter and arrest in response to a public records request. The videos end shortly after officers twice use a Taser on Louden as they attempt to handcuff him.

"Then, while Mr. Louden was bleeding profusely from his mouth, the Officers put a spit mask over his face. Mr. Louden could not breath and thought he was about to die," according to his updated suit, which notes that he suffers from bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. "At all relevant times, Mr. Louden was visibly unarmed, shirtless, and he was not resisting the Officers no attempting to flee."

The videos show several officers walk up to Louden as he stands by the open window of a white Lexus, the same vehicle where a confidential informant told police Louden had stashed a gun. Louden questions why officers are approaching him.

"We pull up, you're reaching in the car," said one of the officers named in the complaint, who was familiar with Louden from past arrests.

"Now I'm about to die y'all, you know what I'm saying?" Louden said.

"Why is that?" the officer asked.

"Because I want to die," Louden said. "I'm over here fixing to barbecue."

The officer said Louden, who drops a can of Natural Light beer during the encounter, was drinking on the public way, while Louden said he was trying to clean up the community.

"Why are y'all messing with me?" Louden asked. "Is this somebody called the police? What did I do?"

"We've talked about this. Me and you have talked about this, I've arrested you back here," the officer said. "This is a problem area, Ronald, it's a problem area."

Louden gets his phone out and tries to call 911.

"I just want them to hear me," he said. "Excuse me, 911 please, because I'm about to die, y'all, I'm about to die. Y'all want to see me die right now?"

Four officers attempt to handcuff Louden, as he tells police to kill him and continues to maintain he has done nothing wrong.

One officer says he is losing a grip on his arm, and an officer shoots a Taser into his back, causing Louden to fall face-first onto the concrete, striking his face on a parking barrier. The video ends shortly after officers shock him with a Taser a second time.

Louden was charged with being an armed habitual criminal, resisting and obstructing police, battery, unlawful possession of cannabis and unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. Through he was on parole at the time, authorities did not issue a parole violation warrant, according to police.

Louden first filed his lawsuit via a handwritten complaint in July 2018. Acting as his own attorney, it took him until March 2019 to pay the required $400 filing fee.

At Louden's sentencing hearing in May 2019, Assistant State's Attorney Patricia Berlinsky said Ken Carter, one of the officers named as a defendant in the suit, was prepared to testify that police received a tip from a confidential informant that Louden had a gun with an extended magazine near the Lexus.

Carter would testify that officers saw Louden put something into the car through the open window as they arrived on scene, Berlinsky said, according to a transcript of the hearing.

Berlinsky said Louden "did ultimately get his hands free at which point the officers deployed their taser and tased the defendant who felt and hit his mouth on a concrete parking barrier and appeared to be injured." Police later found a loaded 9mm handgun and some cannabis, she said.

Louden pleaded guilty to a single count of unlawful use of a weapon by a felon was sentenced to four years in prison.

In June 2019, lawyers for Evanston responded with a motion to dismiss Louden's complaint.

Victoria Benson, former deputy city attorney, argued Louden's guilty plea meant he could not pursue his claims of excessive force because he had already admitted "his physical resistance led to the officers' use of force" and that officers called an ambulance.

"These stipulations, which the criminal court accepted and made part of its judgment, are identical to the issues [Louden] raises in his Complaint," Benson said, asking a judge to toss out the case. "In other words, it has been determined in [Louden's] underlying criminal case that any force used by [Evanston police] was not excessive and that [the officers] provided [Louden] adequate medical care."

U.S. District Judge Jorge Alonso rejected the city's argument, denying its motion to dismiss in October 2019.

Alonso said the issues decided at the plea hearing are not identical to those raised by Louden's federal suit. Admitting to resisting arrest does not necessarily mean an officer's use of force was reasonable in response.

"Although [Louden] stipulated to resisting at one point in time – prior to being placed in handcuffs – he did not stipulate to resisting at any other times," Alonso said, noting Louden's first complaint alleged that police had used force against him while he was on the ground and in the ambulance.

"More importantly, though, even were [Louden] resisting, neither the question of the reasonableness of [the officers'] conduct in response to [him], nor whether their conduct exceeded the bounds of their authority, were ever litigated in the criminal proceedings."

Louden continued to represent himself through the discovery process, records show. In September 2020, Louden and city attorneys agreed to a settlement conference, and Louden accepted a volunteer lawyer for the negotiations.

Settlement discussions continued through March, when Louden retained an attorney for the first time.

Attorney Andrew Stroth filed the amended complaint on his behalf on April 20.

The suit's seven counts include excessive force, false arrest, conspiracy, inadequate medical care, battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress and indemnification of the city as his employer.

The suit alleges that police choked Louden's neck when he yelled for help and "laughed at the distress" they caused him on the way to the hospital.

Police reported Louden kicked an officer who was attempting to restrain him for Evanston Fire Department paramedics.

According to the Illinois Department of Corrections, Louden is scheduled to complete his parole for the gun charge next month.