Kansas City woman shot by Jackson County deputy files lawsuit, citing excessive force
A civil lawsuit has been filed on behalf of a woman who was shot and wounded by a Jackson County deputy earlier this year.
The lawsuit comes over a month after the deputy was charged with assault from the Aug. 8 shooting.
The lawsuit, naming Deputy Lauren N. Michael as the defendant, was filed Friday in Jackson County Circuit Court by attorneys representing Brittany Simek. It states Michael used excessive force upon Simek, who posed no threat to the deputy and wasn’t committing a crime.
According to the lawsuit, Simek was riding on the back of a scooter being driven by her friend on Main Street near 37th Street in Kansas City.
Deputies conducting traffic enforcement patrols that night noticed the two were allegedly riding the scooter on the wrong side of the street, according to previous reporting in The Star.
A deputy followed the scooter in a patrol car.
The lawsuit states the the two collided after the patrol car veered in front of the scooter. The person operating the scooter was immediately arrested, and Simek left the scene to go home, according to the lawsuit.
Simek stopped at a convenience store on her way home and purchased a Gatorade drink. A little over a block away from home, she stopped to rest on some steps and drink her Gatorade at Oak Street near 41st Street.
Soon after, a Jackson County Sheriff’s Office patrol car caught up to Simek. According to the lawsuit, Michael got out of the car and ordered Simek to get on the ground. Simek says she put her hands up and asked what she had done.
The lawsuit states Michael pulled Simek by her hair to the ground and used a stun gun on Simek two times.
Simek got up and began running toward her home.
According to the lawsuit, Michael pulled out a handgun and fired five shots at Simek as she ran. Simek sustained gunshot wounds to her lower back, the side of her back and her buttocks. One bullet struck her cellphone in her back pocket. Another was found lodged in a car parked on the street.
The lawsuit states Simek also suffered injuries to her abdomen and chest from the stun gun.
Michael’s actions, the lawsuit states, “demonstrated a deliberate and/or reckless indifference to the Plaintiff’s safety and well being,” and said it entitles Simek to “punitive and/or exemplary damages.”
The lawsuit also makes reference to two others filed against Michael, including a wrongful death lawsuit for a 2017 shooting that resulted in the death of a man who was suspected of shoplifting at a Raytown Walmart. The incident resulting in the death of Donald Sneed III is being re-examined by the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office.
It was unclear Friday if Michael had an attorney to represent her in the most recent lawsuit. Michael could not be immediately reached for comment.
This story was originally published November 15, 2019 at 9:05 PM.
