'It's The Wrong Plate,' Woodridge Cops Said During False Arrest: Lawsuit

WOODRIDGE, IL — A Downers Grove man is suing the Woodridge Police Department, alleging that officers boxed in his car, drew their guns and threatened to "end him" during a false arrest last January. The complaint alleges that "other than being a black male driving a Volkswagen with a license plate starting with CN," Derrick House had nothing else in common with the suspect police had sought.

The complaint, filed by Ekl, Williams & Provencale LLC Friday, also names officers Daniel Murray, Zachary Harvey, Brett Kielbasa, Tom Cybulski and Patrick Prendergast.

Videos shared on the law firm's website appear to show body cam footage of the Jan. 19, 2024, arrest. In the footage, a gray Volkswagen with Illinois license plates CN 49263 has been pulled over by officers in Woodridge Police Department squad cars.

The video appears to show police with their guns drawn, demanding that the driver, whom the complaint identifies as House, exit his car.

An officer can be heard yelling, "Put it in park. Put it in park, real slow. Everything real slow."

"I'm going to shoot you in the head if you come up with anything other than that," an officer can be heard saying.

House exits the car, appearing to comply with officers and is put into handcuffs.

Shortly after, the officer wearing the body camera, whom the complaint identifies as Kielbasa, walks around the vehicle and checks its license plate while holding a memo pad that reads "CN 78394."

Kielbasa then beckons two other officers toward him and says, "That's not the right car," appears to check something in his cellphone and says, "This is the wrong car."

An officer, whom the complaint identifies as Murray, responds, "No, it's not." To which the officer wearing the body cam says, "Yes, it is."

Murray says, "It's CN."

"The last four or five don't match. It's the wrong plate," Kielbasa responds.

To which Murray shouts, "F**k."

Additional footage from Harvey's body cam shows Murray telling Harvey, "Take him out; wrong car."

Harvey then goes to the squad car House is in and telling him to, "Hop out, man."

Police then take House out of the handcuffs.

Murray can be heard telling House, "Oswego PD had a shooting. Car plates...car's same as yours...The plates match with...the plates match...two of them are off. That's why you were placed in handcuffs. We thought you were the guy."

Murray says, "Hey, listen to me. I f****d this up, okay? I'm going to give you my card. This is on me."

As he returns to his car, House says, "I lived in Woodridge for 10, I've been in Downers Grove for three. I'm an upstanding citizen. My kids go to school here."

The lawsuit states,

"The truth, not surprisingly, of the magnitude of conscious and deliberate disregard the Defendants had for Derrick’s existence on that afternoon, differentiating him from suspects in a shooting in Oswego ,was so stark at the time that it only took approximately 78 seconds after Derrick was placed in handcuffs for all officers involved, including the Defendant, Daniel Murray, to know Derrick had nothing to do with any Oswego shooting, and that they blatantly and unreasonably violated Derrick’s rights."

The suit alleges the arrest was "unconstitutional and illegal" and adds that House "has nightmares. He has become emotionally volatile, and that volatility has affected his family and social life, and these injuries and damages are certain to continue for the rest of Derrick’s life, because he will never be free of seeing police out in the world, and will never be free of the dread and terror he experienced."

House is seeking $500,000 "for compensatory and punitive damages." alleging false arrest, excessive force, failure to intervene, assault, false imprisonment, intentional infliction of emotional distress and municipal indemnity.

Click the links to view the body cam footage of House's arrest and read the complaint against Woodridge police.

In a statement, the Village of Woodridge wrote,

"While we respect the legal process and the right of individuals to pursue their grievances
through the courts, we wish to clarify the context surrounding the incident. On the day in question, our officers were responding to a highly volatile situation involving individuals suspected of possessing firearms, slashing tires, and discharging a weapon. Given the immediate danger posed by these individuals, officers acted based on information available at the time, which led to the stop of a vehicle that, unfortunately, was not the one they were specifically seeking.

The Village of Woodridge deeply regrets the distress caused to the occupant of the vehicle
involved. Our officers acted under the assumption that they were intervening in an
emergency, with the safety of the community at the forefront of their actions. This was a
decision made in good faith, with the intention of preventing further harm.

We are committed to transparency and accountability in all matters, including this incident, and will defend this new lawsuit. Our priority remains ensuring the safety and security of all individuals in our community, while also ensuring our officers are equipped with the appropriate training and guidance to handle challenging situations with professionalism. We ask for understanding as we navigate this process and remain dedicated to upholding the trust and safety of the public we serve."