Civil rights attorney to sue Knox County sheriff, UT Medical over deaths of Black men

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump visited Knoxville on Wednesday to discuss lawsuits against Knox County and the University of Tennessee Medical Center over the deaths of two Black men following encounters with county law enforcement officers.

Crump, who is representing the families of Daevon Saint-Germain and David Batts, compared the death of Saint-Germain to that of Breonna Taylor, who was killed during a police raid in Louisville, Ky, in March 2020.

“This is Knoxville’s Breonna Taylor,” Crump said. “The killing of an 18-year-old high school senior. There are so many unanswered questions as to why he was shot nine times, and no video footage exists to explain why this young man was killed that morning.”

Saint-Germain was shot and killed on Jan. 3 by Knox County Sheriff SWAT deputies during an early morning raid at his family’s south Knoxville home.

The Knox County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) says deputies were carrying out a search warrant when Saint-Germain allegedly showed a firearm, prompting officers to open fire. The warrant was reportedly issued based on social media activity that investigators claimed linked Saint-Germain to drug sales, including marijuana and THC products.

But the details of what happened during the raid remain murky. SWAT officers involved were not wearing body cameras, a fact that has fueled growing concerns over transparency and accountability of the KCSO. Saint-Germain’s family, who were inside the home at the time, deny the allegations about him.

Despite the absence of body camera footage, Crump expressed confidence in his legal team’s path forward.

“With eyewitness accounts, physical evidence, and strong expert testimony, we believe we can bring a successful 1983 civil rights wrongful death lawsuit on behalf of Daevon’s family,” he said.

In March after a petition circulated calling for answers and police reform, Sheriff Tom Spangler expressed regret at the lack of body cameras but defended the actions of deputies.

Spangler announced at a community meeting that he directed his SWAT team members to begin using body cameras after discovering they were not equipped with them during the raid.

“They did not have cameras. I wish they had, but they didn’t and that’s it. But, with that said, they are already in place now,” he  said.

Crump also attributed the circumstances surrounding delivery of the warrant to racial bias.

“This was a kid with no criminal history,” said Crump. “And we are talking about an alleged social media post about marijuana. Can you imagine if they started kicking in everyone’s door in violation of the fourth amendment because of marijuana?

“Sadly this only seems to happen to Black people in this country,” he said.

Five days after Saint-Germain’s death, 46-year-old David Batts died on Jan. 8 following a violent encounter with law enforcement at the Roger D. Wilson Detention Facility. Batts was arrested the day before after causing an alleged disturbance at the Knoxville Area Transit center and was initially taken to the University of Tennessee Medical Center. There, he was accused of assaulting two nurses, which led to his transfer to the county jail.

Within minutes of his arrival at the facility, deputies attempted to force Batts to change into a jail uniform. When he did not comply, officers pepper-sprayed him, used a Taser on him four times, and struck him repeatedly. The blows to his face were so severe that family members later said he was nearly unrecognizable. Batts was found unresponsive the next day and later pronounced dead at the hospital.

Crump said that Batts was in need of care, not violence.

”David Batts needed help. It’s troubling so many times when a Black person in America is having a medical crisis or mental health crisis, it is not treated as a medical issue,” he said. “It is treated as a criminal issue, and it is met with excessive force and brutality.”

According to the KCSO, Batts was non compliant, which prompted officers to use force. Body camera footage released by the sheriff’s office shows Batts struggling to follow commands during attempts to check his vital signs. Batts was taken back to UTMC where he died in the hospital.

The Knox County District Attorney’s Office reviewed the incident and concluded that Batts’ death was caused by meningitis, not by the actions of law enforcement officers. 

“Based on my review of the body camera footage and the Medical Examiner’s preliminary findings, I have concluded that the officers involved responded to Mr. Batts’ assaultive and resistive behavior with appropriate force under the circumstances,” District Attorney Charme Allen wrote in a statement.

Crump, along with co-counsel Troy Jones, a Knoxville lawyer, said the legal team will file dual suits — one for medical malpractice against the University of Tennessee Medical Center and a federal civil rights wrongful death suit against the Knox County Sheriff’s Department.

Crump also urged Knoxville community members to stay vigilant and continue raising awareness about the deaths of Batts and Saint-Germain. He acknowledged the challenge of mobilizing in a city where only 17 percent of the population is African American, but emphasized that justice requires persistence even without overwhelming numbers. 

“I believe when you have truth on your side, you have a moral majority,” he said. “And so I want the community to remain engaged and have the same convictions they have with all these other cases across the country.”

Crump has represented families of other men and women who died following altercations with law enforcement, including Taylor, Tyre Nichols of Memphis and George Floyd, the Minnesota man whose killing launched nationwide protests in 2020.