By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
As expected after the similar decision by his former teammate Pero Antic, Atlanta Hawks swingman Thabo Sefolosha has filed a federal lawsuit against the city of New York, alleging he was unjustly arrested outside of a Manhattan nightclub last year during a brouhaha that left him with a broken leg and ended his NBA season prematurely.
The Swiss forward says he called one of the NYPD officers “a midget” before getting manhandled. He testified at his trial that he moved off the block at the behest of a confrontational officer and was trying to give a panhandler a $20 bill when he was grabbed by police and taken to the ground.
The officers “attacked and jumped” on Sefolosha and one used a baton to hit him during the arrest, he claims in the lawsuit. Sefolosha has said he was left with a broken leg during the struggle, causing him to miss the playoffs.
His lawsuit, filed in federal court in Manhattan, alleges the officers arrested him without cause and filed a false report. He is seeking unspecified damages from the city and five police officers.