Man Hit With Police Taser 11 Times Files Suit

Josue Tapia was acquitted last week on charges he attacked police officers and resisted arrest

A Chicago man who was jolted 11 times by a police officer's Taser in a case of mistaken identity last year has filed a federal lawsuit against the officers and the city.

A jury last week acquitted Josue Tapia on charges he attacked police officers and resisted arrest.

"It was uncalled for. That night I was not doing anything wrong," he said Thursday.

Tapia's ordeal began during a May 15, 2010 traffic stop on the 4300 block of South Paulina Street. He said was hauled out of his car, beaten and shocked nearly a dozen times.

"I was just screaming for them to please stop," recalled Tapia's wife, Marilyn. "I was telling them to leave him alone. They just kept cursing me out."

He was taken to the hospital where the marks from the Taser were documented and photographed.

"The most egregious part of this whole situation was the blatant cover-up by the officers after they realized that they had Tasered and beat up the wrong person," said Tapia's attorney, Dennis Giovannini.

Police were acting on an outstanding DUI warrant for a J. Tapia.

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