The only black swimmer on the Eastern Illinois University swim team is suing several Illinois law enforcement agencies after he was wrongfully accused of a crime, forced to the ground at gunpoint and threatened by police, according to the ACLU of Illinois. The nonprofit is representing Jaylan Butler in the suit, which names officers from the Hampton Police Department, the East Moline Police Department, and the Rock Island County Sheriff’s Office. Butler is accusing them of false arrest, excessive detention, and excessive use of force in an incident initially reported by the Dispatch-Argus.
“My dad taught me at a young age what to do when you are stopped by police officers—stop instantly, put your hands up, drop anything you are holding, and drop to your knees,” Butler told the ACLU of Illinois. “I hoped I would never have to use this advice in my life, but all that changed in seconds.”
Butler was traveling with his swim team from a college championship in South Dakota Feb. 24, 2019 when the bus they were riding on stopped just after 8 p.m. for students to stretch their legs near East Moline, Illinois, the ACLU of Illinois reported. After Butler and several of his peers got off the bus, a coach asked Butler to take a photo of a road sign for the team’s social media account. Butler took the photo and was walking back to the bus when several law enforcement vehicles swarmed the area, according to the lawsuit. Officers reportedly told Butler to “get down” and “don’t f---ing move.” “Surprised and confused,” he put his hands up, dropped his cell phone, and fell to his knees, attorneys said in the lawsuit.
Police officers targetted Butler, pointed their firearms at him, and pushed him facedown on the ground, the ACLU of Illinois reported. “While one officer handcuffed him, other officers pinned him to the ground by pushing a knee into Jaylan’s back and pressing down on Jaylan’s neck,” the ACLU of Illinois said. “Another officer then held his gun to Jaylan’s forehead and threatened to ‘blow his f---ing head off’ if he moved.” The team bus driver and coach got off the bus at that point and explained to the officers that Butler was on the swim team, but even when they realized Butler wasn’t the suspect they were searching for, officers searched Butler’s pockets, kept him in handcuffs and forced him to provide identification before releasing him, the ACLU of Illinois reported.
Bus driver Todd Slingerland told the Dispatch-Argus police officers claimed they were taking Butler into custody because they thought the bus was being held hostage. "The one officer was telling Jaylan they were going to arrest him for resisting, but how could they arrest him for something he hadn't done," Slingerland asked the newspaper. He said the bus he drove had EIU on the side of it and Butler was wearing an EIU jacket. “I told them to get the sheriff over there because this was a very big mistake,” Slingerland said. "They said the sheriff was busy with an active-shooter event."
Butler told the ACLU of Illinois the encounter stuck with him in the days that followed and he’s had to receive counseling. “I was scared and depressed,” he said. “I remember sitting in class the next day, looking at the bruises on my wrists and replaying the events of that night. Now whenever I see a police officer, I don’t feel safe—I feel scared and anxious.”
ACLU of Illinois attorney Rachel Murphy called what happened to Jaylan “an example of the harmful police interactions that people of color experience far too often.” “These officers forcibly arrested and searched Jaylan without reasonable suspicion, probable cause, or any other lawful justification,” Murphy said. “They never told Jaylan why he was being arrested, even after they realized their mistake. Instead, it’s clear they based their decision to arrest and harm Jaylan on the fact that he was a young Black man.”