‘Get the… Off Me!’: Ohio Cops Sic Dog on Innocent Black Man After Faulty License Plate Reader Falsely Accused Him of Driving Stolen Vehicle. Now He’s Suing—Atlanta Black Star

In another case of modern technology racially profiling Black people, Brandon Upchurch was complying with police orders to lay on the ground after he was falsely accused of driving a stolen vehicle when one of the cops sicced a police dog on him.

Now, the 39-year-old Black man from Ohio is suing the Toledo Police Department, accusing the cops of unreasonable seizure, excessive force, and battery. . .

Three months after Upchurch’s arrest, with his charges still pending, Wilson — having just been reprimanded — charged Upchurch with an additional charge of failing to comply with a lawful order. All three charges were dismissed in August 2024.

The lawsuit was filed in federal court last week by Cleveland attorney Peter Pattakos and Toledo attorney Jerome Phillips, listing Wilson as the main defendant along with the city of Toledo for failing to train officers on basic constitutional rights.

“City of Toledo, acting under color of state law, failed to correct the training deficiency, or failed to take note of the failure to train, or failed to prevent action under the deficiency, and by doing so directly and proximately caused the deprivation of Plaintiff’s constitutional rights under the Fourth Amendment,” the claim states.

Last year, the Toledo chapter of the NAACP described the arrest as “unwarranted” and “inhumane.”

“Our police are here to serve, not to occupy our neighborhoods even when they believe a violation of the law has been committed,” the Rev. Willie Perryman III, president of the Toledo NAACP branch, told the Toledo Blade.

Click here to view a PDF of the full Atlanta Black Star report

Click here to access several Toledo Blade reports about this case