Case:
There was a shooting on the night of August 5, 2008 that led to the arrest of David Jefferson as one shooter, while a witness identified the second shooter as “Mookie”…[who] hangs in the 2700 block of the Alameda (Baltimore Brew, 2013). Based on previous encounters with Jefferson and Darren Brown, Officer Paul Southard believed that “Mookie” was Brown (Baltimore Brew, 2013). A probable-cause statement was drafted that identified Brown as the second suspect. Brown was arrested on August 7 and was charged with attempted murder, assault, and armed robbery. The lawsuit alleges that these charges were “brought without review by or approval of a prosecutor…[and that] Defendants Bailey, Southard, Min and [Officer Felipe] Carrasquillo made no further attempts” to confirm whether Brown was, in fact, “Mookie” (Baltimore Brew, 2013). The surveillance tape was watched by David Jefferson’s mother who identified the second suspect “Mookie” as being her son’s cousin, Kevin Johnson Jr. Darren Brown was imprisoned for seven months by the Baltimore police on the basis of his reputed nickname. Brown charged four police officers with acting “with deliberate and/or reckless disregard for the truth” while conducting an investigation. The case was settled after U.S. District Court Judge Richard D. Bennett denied a motion by the four defendants to dismiss the suit (Baltimore Brew, 2013). The case settlement of $150,000 will terminate the case, with the proviso that the plaintiff and his lawyers not publicly discuss the lawsuit (Baltimore Brew, 2013). Brown’s lawyer had brought it to the attention of the State’s Attorney’s Office on December 4, 2008 and again on December 19, of the mother’s statement, but no action was taken until the spring of 2009. Once the case was assigned to a new assistant state’s attorney and a new investigation opened it led to the dismissal of charges against