In Federal Suit, Man Claims DPD Stormed His House For No Reason, Beat the Hell Out of Him

Dallas Observer ^ | January 26, 2012 | Brantley Hargrove

[Altariel]

Not an actual photo

​Every once in a while, amid the stacks of semi-literate, pro se habeas corpus petitions, trademark suits and product liability complaints, there comes a federal filing so disturbing, so completely awful, that it leaves the reader with nothing but questions.

This week, it's Danny Cantu v. The City of Dallas and a whole passel of named and unnamed police officers. According to the complaint, which made its way to Courthouse News yesterday, Cantu, a diesel mechanic, was making his lunch January 22, 2010, when he saw a few cops streaking across his yard. A deafening explosion shook the room as a flash bomb shot through the door. Nearly 20 officers crashed in.

"Get on the ground!" they allegedly ordered him. Cantu, according to the complaint, obliged and was zipcuffed. Inexplicably, the filing claims, the officers kicked and punched him until he was unconscious, lying in a pool of his own blood on the kitchen floor. Meanwhile, they searched his house and allegedly didn't find what they were after. Cantu's alleged butcher's bill: a broken orbital bone, a broken nose, a concussion, traumatic brain injury, a loss of vision in his left eye and loss of hearing in his left ear. According to his complaint, the "injuries required surgical intervention and caused significant scarring and disfigurement."

Cantu was arrested but never charged with a crime. Indeed, a search of county court records yielded no charges under that name. Dallas Police spokesman Kevin Janse told Unfair Park neither the raid nor the name rang a bell. Nobody from the City Attorney's office was available to comment. None of Cantu's attorneys -- there are three -- responded to many messages left for comment. And nobody answered calls placed to a number listed under Cantu's name.

He's seeking unspecified damages to compensate him for his medical bills, mental anguish and disfigurement, among other things

Now for a little unsubstantiated speculation: If the allegations in the lawsuit are true, did police hit the wrong address? Or did they hit the right address on wrong information?

If the parties don't settle this quietly and if we hear back from Cantu or his attorneys, we'll update accordingly.

[Paladin2]

Maybe his wife is the perp?

[Paladin2]

Ahh, Vermont?

[D Rider]

It truly is getting to be a weekly thing with these type of stories.I can’t imagine just sitting in my home minding my own business and having something like this happen.When did America become a controlled police state?

Don't believe any of it. This could never happen in America. /s

[Altariel]

The lawyers have not yet responded to the author. That doesn’t indicate that nothing happened.

Why are some of the officers named? How did he get those injuries? Those are two questions that must be satisfactorily answered by those who insist the victim concocted a story.

[Paladin2]

Here's the source of the inside, old time "joke" (between the ice on many Vermont ski slopes and the technique of Jean Claude Killy); Ahh, Vermont (Avalement)

[Paladin2]

You should strongly consider putting down the Hopium Pipe.

The popos claim that this never happened?

[Slings and Arrows]

I’m marking this one “insufficient information for judgement.” No public records, nothing from the victim’s attorneys, nothing but the victim’s story. At this stage it’s impossible to know what, if anything, happened.