Civil Rights Attorney
Civil rights injustice comes in many different forms. Anything that infringes on the rights of a citizen to be socially and politically equal is against the law, and the guilty party should be held accountable for his or her actions. At The Law Offices of Jezic & Moyse, LLC, we fight to bring offenders of civil rights to justice, and ensure they see their day in court.
Common Civil Rights Violations
Illegal searches
If you are stopped by an officer of the law for a traffic violation, you have certain predetermined rights as a United States citizen. The 4th amended to the United States Constitution states (paraphrased) that US citizens have the right to be secure in their persons and belongings against search and seizure. Officers who perform a search and seizure without probable cause, a warrant, or a reasonable suspicion are in violation of your civil rights.
Wrongful arrest
Wrongful arrest (also known as false arrest) occurs when an individual is taken into police custody without justification to do so. To put it simply, an officer cannot arrest an individual just because they feel like arresting them. An individual must have shown probable cause for an arrest, or a warrant/court order must have been made. This falls under the area of law that requires an arrest to be “privileged.”
Wrongful conviction
As most know, the criminal justice system is not foolproof. It is a flawed system, and mistakes are common. Factors like misidentification, false testimonies, and other phony evidence can lead to the wrong person being convicted of a crime he or she did not commit. No person should ever have to serve jail time for a crime they were wrongfully convicted of, and our legal team has the skill set to prove your innocence.
Police brutality/excessive use of force
Police officers are authorized to use “reasonable force” to make an arrest. To most police officers, this means using as little amount of force as possible to make a smooth arrest. Unfortunately, that is not always the case. Some officers completely disregard their training, and let their emotions take over during an arrest.
This results in police officers using more force than necessary to make an arrest, and statistics suggest it is a growing problem in the United States. An individual who is cooperating with law enforcement should not be subjected to excessive physical force, and an individual that is not a threat to officers’ lives should not be shot. Any form of police brutality/excessive force is a violation of your civil rights.
Racial/sexual discrimination
Acts that discriminate against an individual in the United States based on race or gender are a violation of your civil rights. After all, civil rights are equal rights. Racial/sexual discrimination is common with job hiring practices, sexual harassment, and racial profiling.
A person should never be treated differently based on their race or sex, and it is their legal right to be treated equally. Civil rights laws are put in place to protect the people who have been victimized by this discrimination.
What is section 1983?
Despite many misconceptions, section 1983 is not the legislation that spells out all civil rights afforded to United States citizens. Section 1983, put in layman's terms, allows citizens to sue the government for civil rights violations. In order for a Section 1983 lawsuit to be valid, the defendant must have acted “under color of” the state or federal government.
This essentially means that a representative of the state/government has abused the authority given to them by the state/government. When a section 1983 lawsuit has been made due to an issue with an arrest, most courts will consider the officer to have acted “under color” of law.
Call a Maryland civil rights lawyer if your rights may have been violated
If you or someone you know has been a victim of a civil rights violation, calling The Law Offices of Jezic & Moyse, LLC could be the first step towards getting the justice you deserve. We stand with those who stand up for themselves, and declare that they are not being afforded the same rights as every United States citizen should. Call our office today at 240-292-7200, or leave a message through the contact form below to ensure your claim is under the care of the best civil rights legal professionals.
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