Tuskegee coach files $1M suit against Morehouse, school officers - ESPN

Tuskegee basketball coach Benjy Taylor is seeking more than $1 million in a federal lawsuit filed against two police officers and Morehouse College on Friday after he was handcuffed following a game between the two schools in January, per documents obtained by ESPN.

Immediately following the January 31 matchup between the two Division II Historically Black Colleges and Universities in Atlanta, Taylor asked a school police officer to remove Morehouse football players who'd allegedly harassed and sworn at Tuskegee players and staffers throughout the game. Taylor claimed in the lawsuit that he again asked the same Morehouse police officer to intervene when those football players ran onto the court during the postgame handshake lines. He was then placed in handcuffs and escorted off the floor by the officer.

Taylor was not charged with a crime and he was later released and allowed to travel with the team.

«During the ceremonial handshake that followed the game between the two teams, Coach Taylor made a request to Officer Clark to remove unauthorized students from the ceremonial handshake line. In response, Officer Clark chose not to ensure the safety of the student athletes, coaches, and staff of Tuskegee University,» states the lawsuit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division. «Instead, Officer Clark handcuffed Coach Taylor in front of thousands of onlookers including Coach Taylor's family members and escorted him from the vicinity as if he were the most wanted individual in America. As a consequence of this reprehensible act and the miscarriage of justice directed at Coach Taylor, Coach Taylor has endured physical damages, emotional distress, and financial losses.»

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