On Wednesday, Atlanta Hawks Thabo Sefolosha filed a civil suit against the city of New York and five police officers based on charges of false arrest, excessive force, malicious prosecution and false imprisonment.
On April 8, 2015, Sefolosha and teammate Pero Antic were arrested outside of 1Oak nightclub in New York, the night Indiana Pacers Chris Copeland was stabbed. Police claimed that both Sefolosha and Pero Antic were interfering with a crime scene, so they were taken into custody. Sefolosha suffered a broken fibula and ligament damage during his arrest, and had to miss the remainder of the regular and post season.
In October, a jury found Sefolosha not guilty of misdemeanor obstructing government administration, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.
At the time he was uncertain if he would file a lawsuit, but Sefolosha has now made the decision to move forward with it on the grounds that his reputation and image were damaged by the incident, and that his value as a professional basketball player has been compromised.
$50 million is the set limit that he can be compensated for both material and punitive damages. Pero Antic also filed a lawsuit. His maximum was set at $25 million.
Source: ESPN
