Jerime Mitchell and his wife are suing Cedar Rapids Officer Lucas Jones and the city over the altercation that left him paralyzed on November 1.

Court documents filed in Linn County show the Mitchells are suing for negligence, assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress and loss of consortium.

The details in the lawsuit paint a much different picture of the interaction between Officer Jones and Mitchell than the one presented by Linn County Attorney Jerry Vander Sanden in announcing neither Mitchell nor Jones would face charges in the case.

Mitchell was shot during a traffic stop on Coe Road, just north of First Avenue on November 1. During the stop, Mitchell and Officer Jones got into a struggle, and Officer Jones shot Mitchell as he tried to drive away from the scene. Mitchell was wounded and paralyzed from the shooting, causing his car to crash into other vehicles. A dash camera captured video of the encounter but a broken microphone of Officer Jones left little audio on the recording.

A grand jury ruled Officer Jones' actions were justified and Vander Sanden declined to press charges against Mitchell, too.

Officer Jones is still on paid administrative leave and has been since the shooting. The City of Cedar Rapids declined to comment on pending litigation.

The lawsuit claims Mitchell "suffered and will continue to suffer great physical and emotional pain and suffering". It does not ask for a specific amount in damages.

The lawsuit first questions the reasons Officer Jones stopped Mitchell, arguing "Officer Lucas Jones had no legitimate, articulable reason for initiating the traffic stop." Police have said the stop was for a broken license plate light. However, the lawsuit claims the light was working. It also notes Officer Jones accelerated and ran a stop sign in pursuit of Mitchell from more than a quarter mile away, when a license plate light would not be visible. The lawsuit says Officer Jones never told Mitchell why he had been pulled over.

In dash camera video of the incident, Officer Jones is seen trying to arrest Mitchell when a scuffle breaks out. The lawsuit claims Officer Jones never told Mitchell he was being arrested or the reasons he was being detained. It also claims Jones used force against Mitchell without justification or probable cause.

During the scuffle, the lawsuit claims Mitchell repeatedly asked Officer Jones what he did and called for him to stop.

The lawsuit claims Officer Jones' use of force was "intending to cause harm," and that caused Mitchell to respond to try to get away from Officer Jones. As he tried to get back in his car and drive away, video shows Officer Jones pull his firearm and shoot Mitchell.

The lawsuit claims Officer Jones told Mitchell "I'm going to kill you, man" while his gun was aimed.

The lawsuit claims Officer Jones' use of force was excessive and unprovoked.

Linn County Attorney Jerry Vander Sanden presented a much different picture of what happened in announcing a grand jury declined to press charges against Officer Jones. Investigators did not talk to Jones before that case was presented to the Grand Jury. During a press conference last December, Vander Sanden described Mitchell as combative with Officer Jones, quoting Mitchell as yelling obscenities. He also noted Mitchell was found with marijuana in the car and in his system.

KCRG spoke with former Chicago Police Superintendent and trainer in use of force for the FBI Richard Brzeczek shortly after the dash camera video was released. He said any type of pulling away from a police officer can be construed as resisting arrest. Brzeczek says police are trained to use any force needed to stop someone from resisting arrest.

"The law says the officer needs to employ superior force, whatever that means, but force greater than is being used against him to make sure the arrest is not defeated," said Brzeczek. "Because, if what may be suggested by people is 'why didn't the officer back off?' now what you're going to have is chaos on the streets."

The lawsuit also references Officer Jones' involvement in a police shooting that killed Jonathan Gossman, 21, in Cedar Rapids in 2015. The lawsuit says Jones was the first to fire at Gossman and emptied all 16 rounds in his gun. But it claims Gossman never hit, assaulted or shot at officers.

In that case, prosecutors ruled Gossman had pointed a gun at police and that Jones, along with another officer, were justified in shooting and killing Gossman. However, the investigation said it could not determine if Gossman ever fired his gun at officers.

The lawsuit also claims the city has not provided records requested as part of the lawsuit but does not specify those records.

KCRG-TV9 spoke to one of the attorneys representing Mitchell Tuesday night. He said a major injustice happened in this case, so legal action is necessary.

The ruling in the Mitchell case raised several heated discussions about race relations in Cedar Rapids. Both the Cedar Rapids Police Chief and the Linn County Attorney faced questions from members of the black community on the handling of the investigation.

Family members have questioned why the case was presented to the Grand Jury before investigators interviewed Mitchell. Vander Sanden told KCRG-TV9 at the time that Mitchell's attorneys had not been responsive with investigators trying to schedule the interview, something Mitchell's family disputes.

