Griffin v. Bell, No. 11-3389 (7th Cir. 2012)
Annotate this CaseGriffin, a high school freshman, was told to go home for dress code violations. Bell, a police officer, accompanied Griffin and twice removed Griffin’s hat. Bell claims that Griffin struck Bell in the face. A second security officer grabbed Griffin’s arm. Bell told Griffin that he was under arrest and got one handcuff on Griffin before Griffin began to struggle. The struggle continued for approximately 20-30 minutes before Bell attached the second handcuff. Griffin told a different story, claiming to have been beaten. Before trial, Bell moved to exclude a two-minute video of part of the incident, recorded by Brown, a friend of Griffin’s. Brown apparently could not be located at the time of trial. Bell contended that, without Brown as a witness, Griffin could not establish a proper foundation, and that the video was confusing and unfairly prejudicial because it showed only a small part of the incident and included gaps. The court excluded the video, excerpts from the video, and still photos created from the video, and prohibited reference to the video to explain a discrepancy in Griffin’s testimony. A jury rejected Griffin’s 42 U.S.C. claim. The Seventh Circuit affirmed.
The court issued a subsequent related opinion or order on September 6, 2012.
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