JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (CN) - When a black man called the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office to report that someone was trying to break into his hotel room, sheriff's Officer Bobby Boatwright responded by shooting him to death in his room, then planting a gun by the corpse, according to a federal complaint.
The survivors claim the sheriff's office has a policy of planting bogus evidence after shooting peaceable people to death.
Antonio Whetstone was shot to death in the North Florida Inn on Dec. 10, 2005, according to the complaint. The estate's representative sued the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office, of Jasper, Fla., and Sheriff J. Harrell Reid.
Officer Boatwright is not named as a defendant.
The estate is represented by Reginald Luster of Jacksonville.
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