A hearing on a motion to dismiss is scheduled Aug. 5 in a federal courtroom in Virginia in a case filed by a legally-armed citizen against several police officers, the County of Arlington and the Arlington County Police Department alleging repeated violations of civil rights.
The plaintiff is Curtis Levar Wells, Jr. At the time of the incident on Feb. 9, 2020, Wells was a 20-year-old Army veteran residing in Virginia. He was legally parked outside of the Arlington Cemetery after going for a jog, according to court documents. A military police officer from nearby Fort Meyer had left that installation and parked his car behind Wells’ vehicle, preventing him from leaving. The complaint says MP Michael Armstrong “had no reasonable suspicion, no articulable facts, and no probable cause to believe any crime had been committed.”
“Furthermore,” the complaint says, “at the same time and place, Armstrong, as a military police officer, had no authority or jurisdiction to detain Plaintiff when he parked his cruiser behind Wells’ vehicle.”
The lawsuit says Wells was unlawfully detained though he was not arrested, and subsequently his car was searched without a warrant or his consent.
Arlington County Police Officer Javier Fuentes had been called to the scene by Armstrong, and “and numerous items of his personal property were taken by the Arlington County Police Department (“ACPD”) with no valid legal reason,” the lawsuit says. Fuentes allegedly seized a rifle and pistol from Wells’ car, again “without any reasonable suspicion that the firearms were used in any criminal act and without any suspicion that the firearms would lead to evidence of the traffic infractions for which Plaintiff was being investigated.” The guns were not returned until April 16, 2021, the lawsuit says.
Days later, on Feb. 18, Wells met with an Arlington County Police detective only to have his car seized prior to the issuance of a warrant, the court document alleges. The lawsuit also alleges police used the opportunity to plant drugs in the vehicle so Wells could be arrested and charged with drug violations.
The lawsuit notes “All charges related to drug possession were dismissed in Plaintiff’s favor.”
The lawsuit further alleges that Wells’ Second, Fourth, Fifth and Fourteenth amendment rights were violated and he was “maliciously prosecuted and falsely imprisoned.”
Wells is represented in his lawsuit by attorney Matthew A. Crist, PLLC, of Manassas, Va.
