Local News

Grandfather suing Fayetteville police after release of bodycam footage

Fayetteville Police defended the officer involved, saying the city would "vigorously defend the lawsuit."

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By
WRAL News/Fayetteville Observer
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — A grandfather who called police in 2019 alleging his granddaughter’s boyfriend threatened them with a weapon has filed a lawsuit against the Fayetteville Police Department after a police officer slammed him to the ground, knocking him unconscious, according to a civil complaint filed Thursday in Cumberland County Superior Court.

Police were called to a home in Fayetteville at approximately 2 p.m. on March 4, 2019, in regards to a dispute between Roberts Edwards, 66, his granddaughter and her ex-boyfriend.

Edwards is now suing the Fayetteville Police Department.

“It’s our legal opinion that he had no excuse to leg sweep him,” said Edwards' attorney, Michael Porter. "We believe, as stated in the complaint, that the officer used inappropriate and excessive force in violation of our client's civil rights.

Fayetteville Police issued the following statement in response to the lawsuit, defending the officer involved, saying the city would "vigorously defend the lawsuit."

"The City of Fayetteville is aware of the potential lawsuit that will be filed by Mr. Edwards. There is body camera footage of the incident which includes the events leading up to Mr. Edwards’s arrest. Pursuant to a court order allowing the release of the body camera footage the Fayetteville City Council did review the footage. In anticipation of potential litigation a use of force expert also reviewed the footage and determined that the actions of Officer Guilette were appropriate and reasonable under the circumstances and that Officer Guilette used the least amount of effective force to control the situation. The City intends to vigorously defend the lawsuit."