FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — A trial is set to begin in a lawsuit filed by a young black man who was unarmed when a sheriff's deputy shot him, leaving him paralyzed.
Opening statements are scheduled Tuesday in the federal lawsuit filed by 22-year-old Dontrell Stephens against Palm Beach County Deputy Adams Lin and the sheriff's office.
The six-woman, two-man jury jurors will decide whether Lin justifiably shot Stephens in September 2013. Lin pulled Stephens over after he cut his bicycle in front of traffic. Dashboard camera video shows Lin shot Stephens within five seconds of stopping him.
Stephens was unarmed, but Lin told investigators Stephens reached for his waistband. The sheriff's office and local prosecutors cleared Lin of criminal wrongdoing. Lin is Asian-American.
