Jury awards Cleveland man $22m settlement after he says 'police beat him and locked him in a closet for four days'

The City Lawyer says the ruling will not last

Fox 8 Cleveland

A Cleveland decided in favour of a black man who said a police detective beat him and locked him in a closet for four days, without food or toilet access - awarding him a $22m (£15.3m) settlement.

Arnold Black, 48, filed a lawsuit claiming that he was wrongfully arrested in 2012 when he says police detained him under suspicion of possessing a kilogram of cocaine, the Associated Press reported.

Mr Black’s attorney, Bobby DiCello, said that East Cleveland police detective Randy Hicks began punching his client when officers search uncovered no drugs. Mr Black testified that officer Jonathan O’Leary held him while the detected punched his face and head.

Mr Black’s family testified that he now has physical and emotional troubles resulting from his experience with the police.

Despite the jury’s decision, City Law Director Willa Hemmons told the AP that the ruling will not hold up because the trial had been held without attorneys representing the East Cleveland police.

Mr DiCello explained that the trial went through because the judge had said all parties were notified.

But Ms Hemmons, who said the city was not aware the trial even took place, reportedly believes the ruling should be void, as she had filed an appeal related to the case in the Ohio Supreme Court. One her appeal was filed to the higher court, she told Fox 8, the the lower court lost its jurisdiction.

Still, she was critical of the jury’s decision.

“The verdict is over the top,” Hemmons said. “Tamir Rice died, and the family only got $6m. This guy is walking around.”

In his testimony, Mr Hicks accused East Cleveland Police Chief Ralph Spotts of encouraging a “culture of violence” amongst the local police force.

None of the law enforcement involved in Mr Black’s case are employed with East Cleveland.