Sureshbhai Patel, 57 was
walking along a sidewalk in Madison, Alabama
Officers responded to complaint
he was looking in garages along the street
Cops approached him and he
immediately said to them 'No English'
They started a search but he
pulled away - prompting the cop to use force
Mr Patel had his arm put behind
his back and was pushed to the ground
Was injured and taken to
hospital as a result with injuries to his spine
Had been in the United States
for two weeks, his family fear he may not leave the hospital
By Wills Robinson For
Dailymail.com
An Indian grandfather has been
left paralyzed after a police officer violently frisked him and pulled him to
the ground - even though he wasn't committing a crime.
Sureshbhai Patel was walking
along a sidewalk in Madison, Alabama, last week when he was roughed up by the
cop and pushed to floor - injuring his spine.
The 57-year-old, who doesn't
speak English, had only been in the country for two weeks, arriving so he could
help take care of his 17-month-old grandson.
He is being treated in
Huntsville Hospital and has limited movement in his right leg but his family
fear he may never leave.
Madison Police have wished Mr
Patel a speedy recovery and have suspended one of the officers involved while
they investigate what happened.
The 57-year-old, who had only
been in the United States for two weeks, has limited movement in his right leg
but his family fears he may never be able to leave the hospital
Two officers initially
responded to a complaint a 'suspicious person' was looking in garages around
the neighborhood which residents say is usually quiet.
The caller said they did not
recognize Mr Patel and claimed he was walking on other people's property.
When they arrived on the scene
he said 'no English', and repeated his son's house number in a bid to inform them he was in fact a
resident.
He stepped away when officers
tried to search him, prompting one of them to bring him to the ground.
They claim a 'communication
barrier' is partially to blame for what happened and have wished Mr Patel a
speedy recovery.
Quiet suburb: Officers
initially responded to a complaint a 'suspicious person' was looking in garages
around the neighborhood. His attorney has claimed there was nothing suspicious
'other than he has brown skin'
Anger: His son Chirag, who paid
for him to fly over from the small Indian village of Pij, said bringing his
father over to the United States was a dream. He was surprised at the attack as
he believes its a good neighborhood
His son Chirag, who paid for
him to fly over from the small Indian village of Pij, told AL.com: 'This is a
good neighborhood. I didn't expect anything to happen.
'He was just walking on the
sidewalk as he does all the time. They put him to the ground.'
'It is a dream for me because I
came from a very poor family and I worked so hard here.'
Hank Sherrod, an attorney for
the family, told the site: 'This is broad daylight, walking down the street.
There is nothing suspicious about Mr. Patel other than he has brown skin.
'This is just one of those
things that doesn't need to happen.'
The police statement read: 'The
subject began putting his hands in his pockets. Officers attempted to pat the
subject down and he attempted to pull away. The subject was forced to the
ground, which resulted in injury.
Madison Police have refused to
reveal the identity of the officer involved and have not released video or
audio evidence of the stop.
