Connecticut Man Awarded $10K in Police Brutality Suit

A Connecticut man has been awarded $10,000 in damages after a federal judge ruled that he had been beaten by a police officer after a drug fueled car chase.

Donato Rinaldi, of Watertown, Conn., filed the suit in 2014 against two Waterbury officers.

The Republican-American reported that police chased Rinaldi and another man through several towns in 2011 because they were suspected of stealing energy drinks that they intended to resell so they could buy cocaine.

Rinaldi said after his vehicle crashed, he was beaten by two officers. The judge cleared one of the officers. A picture of Rinaldi taken after the chase shows him with bruises around the eyes, as well as bandages and cuts on his face and forehead.

The judge did not award punitive damages, citing Rinaldi’s “outrageous” conduct.