AKRON, Ohio — Dr. Curtis Williams II said he's still dealing with emotional trauma and nightmares after he was arrested at the Summit County Courthouse by a half dozen sheriff's deputies during a September, 2020 incident.
Williams, and his attorney Peter Pattakos, have now filed a 39-page federal lawsuit claiming Williams' civil rights were violated during an arrest that had deputies using a taser and tackling Williams to the ground.
To read the entire lawsuit, click here.
Williams told News 5 he's been a counselor at the Summit County Courthouse for quite some time, providing assistance to those in the judicial system, a job that had him at the courthouse multiple days every week.
Williams said he was stunned when Summit County Judge Elinor Stormer tried to stop him from using a side-door at the courthouse, when he simply needed to use a restroom during a counseling session.
Williams said Judge Stormer falsely accused him of assaulting her during a confrontation at the side door, yelling out to deputies, who then used force to take him to the ground, instead of talking out the situation.
Williams even pointed to written statement submitted by the Judge where she admitted to placing her hands on his chest.
“If you can imagine the idea that you did not do anything, and now you’re being brutalized by a group of men, and you can’t even defend yourself properly, that’s a feeling of helplessness,” Williams said. “I was attempting to explain to them the capacity of why was in the building, and I was attempting to explain to them the reason I was coming into the building, meaning I needed to use the restroom.”
Pattakos told News 5 charges of assault, trespassing and disorderly conduct in the case were later dropped against Williams in 2021, but said the Summit County Sheriff's Department never investigated the use-of-force by its deputies.
“Dr. Williams was in a public building, trying to access a public area of that public building, on a day when he was serving the public, Pattakos said. “If we don’t file this lawsuit, if Curtis doesn’t stand-up for his constitutional rights here, what hope does anyone have that our public officials, that are entrusted to uphold the law, will ever do so. We want to know why the Summit County Sheriff hasn’t investigated what happened here.”
News 5 reached out to the Summit County Sheriff's Department for this story, but it said it would not comment on on-going litigation. We also attempted to reach out to the judge and her attorneys, but they have not yet issued a response.
Meanwhile, Pattakos told News 5 he hopes Summit County will respond to the federal lawsuit in court by the end of the year.
“We all of have the right to be free from excessive force, the right to be free from malicious prosecution, the right to be free from prosecution based on fabricated evidence," Pattakos said. "Everybody has those rights, and to see those rights violated in a courthouse by sheriff's deputies and a judge is shocking.”
