photo by: Shutterstock image

The Robert J. Dole Federal Courthouse for the District of Kansas

A judge has dismissed a lawsuit in federal court that accused two Lawrence police officers of using excessive force in the plaintiff’s arrest.

Donavan R. Hiller, 35, has remained in the custody of the Douglas County Jail on a $50,000 cash or surety bond since he was arrested Aug. 30, 2019, jail records indicate. A woman had told police that Hiller sexually assaulted her and hit her in the head with a skillet, and he has been charged with aggravated sexual battery, aggravated battery, criminal threat and criminal restraint.

Hiller alleged in the civil case, which he filed on his own behalf from the jail Jan. 27, that the officers “assaulted” him with a Taser after he opened the door for them and “stood in the entryway, silent, unarmed, and in shock.” He wrote that the Taser probes hit him in the stomach and groin, and it caused him to fall and strike the back of his head on a coffee table.

photo by: Douglas County Sheriff’s Office

Donavan R. Hiller, pictured in August 2019

The officer who used the Taser wrote in an affidavit that Hiller was standing still, staring at him and not complying with his commands to come outside and talk with him.

“Based on the violent nature of the call, knowledge that Hiller had access to knives in the residence and not knowing if there were other persons in the residence, I determined the course of action was to tase Hiller to take him into custody,” the officer wrote.

In a memorandum and order last week, U.S. District Judge Holly Teeter dismissed Hiller’s case. She wrote that the officers in their individual capacity were entitled to qualified immunity, which shields them from liability. Teeter also wrote that Hiller did not put forth evidence showing that the officers had acted “pursuant to an established policy or custom,” so he failed to establish claims against the officers in their official capacity.

Lt. David Ernst, a spokesperson for the Lawrence Police Department, declined to comment for this article Tuesday.

A judge last month denied Hiller’s attorney’s motion to reduce bond in his criminal case, online court records show, and his next court hearing is a status conference set for Dec. 15.