Court documents disclose a legal case in which a resident of Memphis is taking the city and its police force to court, seeking over $5 million in damages. He alleges he was unjustly jailed for more than two years for an illegal act he staunchly denies having any involvement in. Ladarrius Perry, merely 17 years at the time of his controversial arrest, asserts he was held at 201 Poplar for an duration exceeding two years. This arose from multiple infringements of his civil liberties during the probe into a female murder case back in late 2020.
Perry brings multiple charges against the defendants in his lawsuit, including wrongful incarceration, misconduct in training and supervision, negligence in day-to-day operations, and a case of spiteful persecution. The suit alleges that while he was still in his teenage years, Perry was manipulated and mislead throughout his interrogation. The process was so intense that he ultimately confessed to a crime he maintains he never committed.
The court documents lay out Perry’s claims in rigorous detail, stating his arrest was carried out without fulfilling the necessary criterion of probable cause. The lawsuit further delves into the strategies deployed while questioning Perry. These tactics, it is vouched, persecuted Perry’s fundamental rights in various ways.
Among the violating actions outlined in Perry’s lawsuit are the supposed threats leveraged against him, along with the refusal to halt the interrogation despite Perry’s legal entitlement to cease questioning at any moment. Additionally, Perry accuses the police force of denying his request to make a phone call to his legal guardian.
The lawsuit goes on to provide chilling details of Perry’s interrogation. It suggests that Perry, who was still in the early stages of adulthood, was deceived into waiving his Miranda rights unknowingly. It further alleges that he was confined to an uncomfortably cold room, with the promise of a jacket conditioned on his confession.
According to the narrative of events detailed in the lawsuit, Perry maintained his innocence staunchly for a span of three hours prior to coercively confessing. Subsequent to his confession, Perry spent the better part of the subsequent two years in incarceration as he awaited his trial.
Perry was finally freed from the trial when the charge was dismissed in the concluding month of 2023. The official reason for this dismissal was a startling lack of probable cause, mirroring his initial objection at the time of his arrest.
The Memphis resident is now seeking recourse for the injustice he suffered. Perry’s primary ask, as outlined in the lawsuit, is for $5 million in damages as a means of compensating for the wrongful incarceration he experienced.
In addition to the monetary compensation, Perry seeks additional punitive damages against the defendants. This indicates his intention to press for accountability and potential penalties beyond general compensation.
Furthermore, Perry is requesting the court to mandate the defendants, namely the city and the police force, to cover all related fees associated with this case. This includes legal, court and other ancillary costs that have been incurred in his pursuit of justice.