The McKinney, Texas police officer who is seen aggressively shoving and pinning down a 15-year-old Black girl at a pool party disturbance caught on video was named in a 2008 lawsuit.
The suit, brought forth by a Black motorist, accused Officer David Eric Casebolt of racial profiling, excessive force and falsifying information, according to federal court records.
Casebolt was among at least three officers involved in the April 2007 incident that allegedly escalated to a “visual cavity search.” Motorist Albert Earl Brown Jr. was arrested and convicted of possessing drugs. He claimed in court papers that he was set up.
According to Brown’s lawsuit, Casebolt allegedly approached his parked vehicle, made comments about his clothes and the white female passengers he was with and pulled down Brown’s pants to conduct a forcible search. Another officer, Lee Keith, allegedly grabbed his head and slammed his face into the hood of the car with “intent to cause bodily harm.”
Brown filed a civil-rights lawsuit against Casebolt and the other officers, accusing them of pinning bogus charges on him in an effort to cover up their behavior.
The lawsuit was dismissed after Brown conceded that his incarceration made it impossible to obtain evidence needed to defend himself.
He also claimed to lack an understanding of the court process.
A spokesman for the McKinney Police Department declined to comment, citing the ongoing investigation into Casebolt’s behavior at the pool party.
