A Florida man filed a federal lawsuit Thursday against three Jacksonville sheriff’s officers who severely beat him last year after he ran from a traffic stop, alleging they used excessive force that resulted in permanent injuries to his head, an eye and a kidney.

Le’Keian Woods, who said he still suffers migraines, is suing Jacksonville officers Hunter Sullivan, Trey McCullough and former officer Josue Garriga for their roles in the Sept. 29, 2023, beating that drew national attention. Sheriff T.K. Waters has defended the beating as justified. The beating left Woods with a ruptured kidney, a swollen face and bloodied lip. A fourth officer, Beau Daigle, is being sued for pointing his gun at Woods.

Attorneys Harry Daniels and Norman Harris accused the officers of targeting Woods, 25, and the two friends he was with because they are Black. They said the officers used the driver’s failure to wear his seat belt as a pretext to pull over their pickup truck at gunpoint after Garriga claimed he’d seen Woods sell cocaine to a man at a gas station. The cocaine accusation was later dropped.

– The Associated Press