Powerless against Police Brutality: A Felon's Story

Authors

Tamara F. Lawson, St. Thomas University College of Law

First Page

218

Document Type

Article

Abstract

Imagine driving to the store with friends, but while en route, you are shot and beaten by the police so severely that random citizen witnesses intervene to stop the police brutality. Next, envision recovering from those injuries and awakening from a coma chained to your hospital bed informed that you are under arrest for attempted murder of a police officer. Then, consider waiting over five years for the opportunity to tell your story to the court, believing justice will be served, but instead you discover that the trial is more influenced by the revelation of your prior criminal record than the knowledge of the serious injuries that the police inflicted upon you. These facts introduce the real police encounter experienced by Mr. Theodore Dukes, an ex-felon, in Miami-Dade County. This shooting incident stemmed from an investigation of Mr. Dukes for the misdemeanor of driving with an unauthorized license plate.

Recommended Citation

Tamara F. Lawson, Powerless against Police Brutality: A Felon's Story, 25 St. Thomas L. Rev. 218 (2013).
Available at: https://scholarship.stu.edu/stlr/vol25/iss2/4