ALBUQUERQUE (CN) - A Farmington police officer threatened to shoot a man because he was "about to operate a motor vehicle without a seatbelt," the man claims in Federal Court. Juan Mata says he and his family "have a history of ... litigating against the Farmington Police Department for abuses of police authority," and that this was "well known" to Officer Tyler Rahn and everyone else involved in the case.
Mata says his two children, 7 and 9, were in the car when Rahn drew his gun and pointed it at them, and that the incident left his 7-year-old girl "seriously traumatized."
Mata claims that five other Farmington Police officers witnessed the incident and failed to intervene.
He seeks punitive damages for illegal use of force, failure to train and supervise and constitutional violations. He is represented by Dennis W. Montoya.
Read the Top 8
Sign up for the Top 8, a roundup of the day's top stories delivered directly to your inbox Monday through Friday.
