Minneapolis cop beat man who was then treated as the aggressor, lawsuit says

A 29-year-old man is alleging in a lawsuit that he was beaten and choked into unconsciousness by a Minneapolis police officer during unrest on Nicollet Mall, then unsuccessfully prosecuted after being falsely painted as the aggressor.

Asante J. Simmons sued former officer Alexander V. Brown and the city of Minneapolis in U.S. District Court on Monday contending that his civil rights were violated during upheaval on Aug. 26, 2020, ignited by false rumors that a man who shot and killed himself had been shot by police.

Simmons alleges in the lawsuit that he was exiting a Foot Locker shoe store that was being ransacked when Brown tackled him into an interior hall, hitting him in the head with a baton and punching him.

Brown then put Simmons in a choke hold while on top of him and “continued to choke Mr. Simmons until he lost consciousness,” the suit reads, pointing out that such a hold violated Minneapolis Police Department policy at the time.

Even while Simmons remained unconscious, the suit continues, Brown knelt on him while putting on handcuffs.

The Minneapolis City Attorney’s Office declined to comment Tuesday. Messages were also left with the Police Department seeking a response.

Brown, 41, who now owns and operates Resilience Martial Arts in Lakeville, did not return messages from the Star Tribune.

Simmons was arrested and jailed as Brown prepared what the suit described as a “police report containing a fictitious narrative with multiple false allegations in an attempt to justify his needless use of deadly force,” among them that Simmons pushed the officer to the ground, hit him in the head, fought back and fled the scene.

Brown wrote in his report that he feared for his life. ”I decided to end the fight [with] an unconscious neck restraint,” he wrote, according to the suit.

Simmons was charged two days later with third-degree assault and burglary and was jailed for over a month. Charges were dismissed nearly eight months later, which the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office explained to the court was in the “interests of justice.”

In a motion to the District Court before the case’s dismissal, defense attorney Jordan Kushner pointed out that “this incident occurred slightly after Officer Brown’s Minneapolis police officer colleagues had murdered George Floyd on video by cutting off his oxygen.”

Simmons suffered “significant physical and mental injuries” including diagnosed post-traumatic stress disorder,” the suit continues. For his injuries, emotional distress and financial losses, Simmons is seeking more than $75,000 in damages.

The suit alleges that the city knew of Brown’s history of excessive force. In 2019, he was fired for punching a suspect in the face while the man was on his back and handcuffed. But Brown appealed, and his punishment was reduced to a two-week suspension without pay. He was never charged with a crime and left the department with a $175,000 workers’ compensation settlement reached in November 2021, the suit added.

The dramatic events of Aug. 26, 2020, began in the afternoon, when police responded to a report of a shooting at Ramp A in the area of N. 10th Street and Currie Avenue in downtown Minneapolis. Eddie George Gordon, 61, died at the scene of the gunfire.

The man suspected of shooting Gordon, Eddie Frank Sole Jr., 38, then went to Nicollet Mall and fatally shot himself, setting off the rumor that Sole had been killed by police.

Tension between police and a swelling crowd on Nicollet Mall grew, as some people began smashing windows while police attempted to disperse the crowd with chemical irritants. Looters ran through the downtown Target, Nordstrom Rack and other stores.

Simmons was among more than 130 people who were arrested in the midst of the rioting.

Star Tribune staff writer Abby Simons contributed to this story.