Dillon Randall Ledford filed suit in federal court against the Spruce Pine and Spruce Pine Police last Thursday, alleging that his rights were violated during a 2024 medical emergency that resulted in his arrest.
Ledford, a Marion resident and an officer with the North Carolina Department of Corrections, is suing the town of Spruce Pine, Spruce Pine Police Chief Kasey Cook (both as an individual and in his official capacity), and responding officers Michael Keith Hollifield, Michael Ethan Sale and Dalton Hunter Mace.
According to the lawsuit, on Feb. 16, 2024, Ledford, who suffers from Type I diabetes, was driving in Mitchell County when he began to experience symptoms of low blood sugar and stopped at Walmart to get something to eat.
However, his condition worsened, and after walking around Walmart for a few minutes, Ledford returned to the vehicle he had been driving and sat in the parked car, experiencing diabetic shock.
Because of his diabetic shock symptoms Ledford was unable to seek help for his condition. When Walmart employees attempted to check on him, Ledford was inarticulate and confused, and physically unable to move his car when asked to do so.
A Walmart supervisor called 911 to request a welfare check, based on observations of Ledford’s condition. Spruce Pine police officers responded to the call, and allegedly did not request assistance from any emergency medical personnel.
The suit notes that Ledford did not respond to a flashlight being shined in his eyes.
According to the suit, when the officers in question were unable to communicate with Ledford and found him unable to exit his vehicle, they placed him under arrest and “forcibly removed the plaintiff from the vehicle and threw him to the ground at the driver’s side of the vehicle.”
“Defendant Sale … struck the plaintiff at least 11 times while he was on the ground. … Defendant Sale struck plaintiff with a closed fist from a standing position while the plaintiff was on the ground and restrained by defendants Mace and Hollifield,” the suit further states.
The lawsuit further states that Hollifield used a Taser on Ledford while he was restrained.
“Defendant Hollifield tasered plaintiff while he was on the ground and restrained by defendants Sale and Mace,” the suit alleges. “Defendant Hollifield then tased plaintiff a second time in “drive stun” mode, again while he was on the ground and restrained by defendants Sale and Mace.”
Portions of the lawsuit are dedicated to describing small details of the responding officers’ behavior, apparently in order to establish that the officers were not genuinely afraid of Ledford and thus had no reason to use such forceful measures.
“Defendant Hollifield pulled up his pants, walked to his vehicle, and put on his gloves,” the lawsuit reads. “He then calmly walked back to the plaintiff’s driver’s side door without showing and fear, alarm, or cause to believe he, the other defendant-officers, or any member of the public were in danger or harm’s way.”
The suit was filed in the United States District Court in Asheville.