Officers didn't have a suspect description when they approached Antone Austin outside of his home. A judge ordered the LAPD to release the body cam footage from the 2019 incident. Austin is suing the department for $3 million.
A Los Angeles man is suing the LAPD for $3 million after he was mistakenly arrested outside his own home while taking out the trash. About three blocks away from the location of a domestic violence call, police spotted music producer Antone Austin, newly released body cam footage of the 2019 incident shows.
"Is this the dude?" one officer asked. "Probably," his partner responded.
The officers did not have a description of a suspect when they approached Austin, who is Black, and ordered him to turn around.
“What are you doing, bro? I live here,” Austin responded.
One officer handcuffed Austin as he told cops he’s not who they were looking for. Austin yelled for his girlfriend, who came out wearing a bathrobe. The 911 caller who reported the domestic violence incident also arrived on the scene and told police that Austin was not the person she called about.
Austin and his girlfriend were taken into custody and charged with resisting arrest. They spoke to “Good Morning America” Thursday.
“It’s crazy that they can just convict you, when they’re supposed to be there as mediators to serve and protect,” Austin said. “That they, in their minds, are the judge and the jury, it’s really eye-opening. It changed the way I look at a lot of things."
A judge ordered LAPD to release the footage, denying the department’s argument that doing so would have a “chilling effect” on future investigations.
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