WARREN Leavittsburg man files suit against police chief

A lawyer says the chief and his officers were 'overzealous' in making the arrest.
WARREN -- A Leavittsburg man who was treated for a concussion and sprained wrists and neck after being arrested by Police Chief John Mandopoulos and five other officers says his civil rights were violated.
Randy Dye filed a lawsuit Tuesday through Atty. Kenneth D. Myers in U.S. District Court in Cleveland.
Dye, former student body president at LaBrae High School and soccer team captain, was 18 at the time of his Jan. 12, 2002, arrest for reckless operation, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. He had no other criminal record, Myers said.
Dye eventually pleaded no contest to the disorderly conduct charge and was found guilty. The other charges were dropped.
"The city has not been served with the lawsuit; therefore, we cannot comment," said Law Director Greg Hicks. "We have not had the opportunity to review it."
The chief could not be reached to comment.
What lawsuit says
The suit says Dye was driving on East Market Street after visiting his grandmother at a local hospital when he was pulled over by the driver of an unmarked sport-utility vehicle with a flashing light.
Mandopoulos, who was wearing civilian clothes, got out.
A police incident report says that Dye ran through a red light and narrowly missed hitting two vehicles.
The lawsuit says Mandopoulos asked for identification, then swore at Dye and threatened to pull Dye out of his car if he didn't comply.
Then, according to the complaint, he grabbed Dye by the throat and tried to open his car door.
The chief's version in the report says that when Mandopoulos approached Dye's vehicle the first time, Dye swore at the chief and sped off.
The lawsuit says the young man fled because he feared for his safety. The suit says the chief called for assistance while chasing Dye's vehicle.
Police report
Mandopoulos caught up with the car and boxed it in, the report says. The chief says that when he approached the vehicle the second time, Dye initially refused to get out, but then he jumped out and began screaming for someone to call his mother, the media and an attorney, the report says.
Mandopoulos then grabbed Dye, who tried to pull away and get back into his car, the report says. Dye "slammed the car door on the chief's right hand and attempted to start his vehicle and the chief pulled the keys out of the ignition" and removed Dye from the car, the report says.
Dye fought with the other officers who had arrived at the scene as they were handcuffing him. He stopped resisting and his eyes rolled back in his head and he then became violent again, yelling for a doctor, the police report says.
Dye says in his suit he was dragged by Mandopoulos to a cruiser and his head was pounded against the cruiser while other officers used a chemical repellent on him.
"If you step back and look at the big picture, it presents a consistent picture of overzealousness from the very top," Myers said. "You see incidents like this with the chief. It is very easy to see how that sort of attitude pervades downward through the department."
The suit says the actions of the chief and his officers violated Dye's civil rights, and that Dye has sought medical, psychological and psychiatric treatment.