Family Of Man Slain By Little Rock Officer Files Lawsuit

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — The family of a man shot and killed by a Little Rock police officer working off-duty outside a bar has filed a federal lawsuit, claiming the officer used excessive force and that the man’s death was caused by the city’s failure to properly train its law enforcement.

Attorneys for the family of 28-year-old James Hartsfield filed the lawsuit Monday in federal court against the city, the officer and the night club. Hartsfield was fatally shot by Officer Brittany Gunn in October 2017 as he sped toward a brick wall with her inside the vehicle. Hartsfield and Gunn, who was working off-duty at the night club at the time, were both black. Hartsfield was a driver for Lyft.

Prosecutors last year cleared Gunn of criminal wrongdoing in the fatal shooting.