The city of Cleveland and two Cleveland Police officers are being named in a $25,000,000 lawsuit for the wrongful death of 30-year-old Jermaine Williams on July 23.

Ed Flechas, attorney with Flechas and Associates out of Jackson, sent an intent to file suit letter on July 28 to Mayor Billy Nowell at City Hall.

Flechas’s letter reads Williams was TASERed on multiple occasions by officers Stanley Perry and Bryan Goza. He noted that as a result of the TASER, Williams suffered cardiac arrhythmia and died.

At a press conference held this week by the police department, Chief Charles “Buster” Bingham read a prepared statement.

Around 3:18 a.m. on July 23, officers responded to a complaint of people loitering in the 700 block of Cross Street.

During the conversations, a bag of suspected cocaine was found on top of one of the vehicles where the individuals were standing.

As is normal procedure, the officers asked for identification of everyone.

One particular individual gave the officers several false names.

Another person, later identified as Williams, came up and said he was “gonna call someone.”

He then grabbed the bag of suspected cocaine and ran. An officer pursued him and finally caught up with Williams at Lucy Seaberry Boulevard and Cross Street.

Williams would not comply and continued to resist the officer. The officer then deployed his TASER on Williams.

Even then, according to the read statement, he was still combative and actually tried to take the TASER from the officer.

A second officer then arrived and Williams received a second TASER deployment.

“He was still combative,” said Bingham.

Other officers made it to the scene at which time they had to physically pull Williams’ arms out from under him.

He was cuffed and officers noticed that he was having medical difficulties.

Emergency services were called and prior to their arrival, the officers themselves gave Williams’ medical attention.

He was taken to Bolivar Medical Center.

Bingham did not say whether or not Williams died at the scene, on the way to the hospital or at the hospital.

The chief did not say what happened to the bag of suspected cocaine, whether Williams ingested it or if it was recovered or not at the scene.

However, Bolivar County Coroner Dr. Nathaniel Brown said according to a preliminary autopsy report that Williams had cocaine in his urine and alcohol in his blood.

The cocaine/blood level is still pending the official autopsy report, which may take a month to receive.

The Cleveland Police Department immediately called in an outside agency to investigate. The Mississippi Bureau of Investigations is charged with handling this case.

As for the lawsuit, Flechas said the Williams’ family are seeking damages for loss of society and companionship, present net cash value of Williams’ life expectancy, loss of enjoyment of life, pain and suffering, medical bills or expenses and funeral expenses.

The Bolivar Commercial will continue to report of this incident as facts unfold.