Phoenix Police Officer Seth Samuel Castillo currently faces charges of driving under the influence of alcohol and failing to obey a police officer after he was suspected of DUI by Gilbert police officers, according to the Arizona Republic. The officer will have an Arizona DUI attorney defend him of the charges, but he is also one-upping Gilbert authorities by filing a $500,000 lawsuit against the town.
Officer Seth Castillo is seeking $500,000 in damages from the town, alleging that Gilbert officers used excessive force when arresting him for suspicion of DUI. The man claims that the Gilbert officers used a Taser to incapacitate him before the arrest and that the Taser attack was not necessary. Through the legal claim, the Phoenix officer alleges that Gilbert police officers caused damage to his reputation and inflicted emotional damage.
Lab results say that Officer Seth Castillo had a blood-alcohol level of .173 percent at the time of this arrest, which is more than twice the Arizona legal limit. It might be difficult for an Arizona DUI attorney to prove that he was not impaired at the time of the incident, but an attorney could argue that the failing to obey an officer charge should be dropped from the DUI case, if it can be proven that Gilbert officers were out of line and that they used excessive force when making the arrest.
A pretrial conference has been set for July 23 in the Gilbert Municipal court to establish courtroom proceedings and define the issues being tried.
Related Resources:
-
Officer's DUI Charge Sparks Debate on Disciplinary Policies (FindLaw's Phoenix DUI Blog)
-
Look For a Phoenix DUI Attorney (FindLaw)
-
Phoenix Police Officer Facing DUI Charges (FindLaw's Phoenix DUI Blog)
