LOS ANGELES : Officer’s Suit Says King’s Lawyer Defamed Him
A police officer named as a defendant in Rodney G. King’s civil rights lawsuit against the city sued King’s lawyer Wednesday, alleging the attorney defamed him by telling reporters he is a liar.
Los Angeles Police Officer David Love is seeking unspecified damages from Milton C. Grimes and his Orange County law offices, according to Los Angeles Superior Court papers.
Grimes could not be reached for immediate comment on the lawsuit, which also alleges emotional distress. The plaintiff’s attorney, Michael P. Stone, also was unavailable for comment.
Love contends that Grimes made defamatory statements outside the federal courthouse on April 8, 1994, according to the lawsuit.
That was the day that Love, who is black, testified that “neither he, nor any of the officers involved in the so-called Rodney King incident called King any racially derogatory . . . names,” the complaint states.
Grimes told reporters that Love lied to protect white police officers and to protect his LAPD job, the officer alleges.
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