Judge denies new trial in St. Joseph civil rights case

A federal judge has rejected the plaintiffs' request for a new trial in a civil rights case against four St. Joseph police officers. U.S. District Court Judge Richard Enslen rejected the request by lawyer Roosevelt Thomas, representing three black teens who accused the white officers of racial profiling and violating the teens' civil rights. A jury Aug. 12 found no cause for action against the police officers. In a letter to the judge obtained by The Herald-Palladium, defense lawyer Richard Winslow argued there was no clear reason for the court to overturn the jury's verdict and grant a new trial. "The court must affirm the jury's verdict unless it is left with the definite and firm conviction that a mistake resulting in plain injustice has occurred," Winslow wrote. Plaintiffs Devin Mitchell, Cody Mitchell and Preston Culpepper alleged city police harassed and racially profiled them in violation of their constitutional rights. After seven hours of deliberation, an all-white jury of six women and two men found no cause for action against the four officers. officer was dismissed during trial. [more ]