THE SIDELINES : Police Officer Sues Deion Sanders

The same day Deion Sanders signed a $4.5-million contract with the Atlanta Falcons, an auxiliary police officer here filed suit against the former Florida State star seeking damages from a Christmas Eve confrontation.

Elmer (Tony) Cail, in a suit filed Thursday in Lee County civil court, asked for punitive and compensatory damages for injuries he suffered during a shopping mall scuffle with Sanders during the football player’s visit home to Ft. Myers.

Sanders pleaded no contest in February to battery and breach of peace charges stemming from the altercation. He was placed on six months’ probation and received an $800 fine. The dispute began when Sanders and Evelyn Brophy, an employee at a shopping center gift shop, disagreed over the price of a pair of gold earrings. The argument escalated, and Sanders grabbed Brophy’s necklace and shirt, Brophy told police. Cail then arrived and was trying to arrest Sanders when he struck the auxiliary officer, police reports show.