Representatives of Vincent Bryant, who was shot in the face by a Berkeley police officer in 2021, have filed a lawsuit against the Berkeley Police Department and three police officers, alleging battery, negligence and a violation of Bryant’s civil rights. 

Bryant has been in a coma unrelated to the shooting for around a year, said Michael Slater, one of the attorneys representing him. As a result, his mother, Antonia Bryant, brought the complaint on his behalf. It is unclear whether he will wake up, Slater said. 

The shooting occurred Jan. 2, 2021, when Bryant went to a Walgreens to return some items and use the refund to pay for food, according to the lawsuit. The employees declined to process the return first, so Bryant took the food — valued at $14 — with him and left. 

According to an internal affairs review from the Berkeley Police Department, Bryant allegedly threatened to break the Walgreens windows with a bike chain, and an employee called the police to report an armed robbery. 

Bryant then went to the courtyard of the Tang Center on Bancroft Avenue, where BPD officers located him and, alongside the Berkeley Fire Department, gathered around to create a safety perimeter. Sgt. Samantha Speelman began to negotiate with him, but stopped after about five and a half minutes, according to the lawsuit. 

Shortly after, a contact team of officers approached and attempted to apprehend their suspect. During the encounter, Bryant yelled and showed signs of a mental health crisis, according to the lawsuit. 

The internal affairs review claimed Bryant was poised to strike an officer leading the team, causing Officer Madison Albrandt to shoot him in the face, leaving him permanently disfigured. The team was led by Sgt. Kevin Kleppe, who gave the order for the contact team to approach Bryant with weapons drawn. 

Previously, Bryant and his attorneys filed a complaint with the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. During these proceedings, the judge found that the officers were entitled to qualified immunity, a legal standard that says government officials cannot be held personally responsible for their individual actions on the job as long as they don’t violate someone’s constitutional rights. 

However, the federal court declined to rule on claims related to state law, such as negligence. This allowed Slater to pursue further claims in the Superior Court of Alameda County to argue at the state level that the actions leading up to the shooting, and the shooting itself, were unlawful.

The new lawsuit demands a jury trial and accuses Albrandt and BPD of battery, as well as accusing all defendants, Albrandt, Kleppe, Speelman and BPD, of negligence for confronting Bryant with a “willful and conscious disregard” for his civil rights and health.The lawsuit also accuses all the defendants of violating the Tom Bane Civil Rights Act, which prevents someone from using threats, coercion or intimidation to infringe upon someone else’s rights. 

In a statement, BPD spokesperson Officer Byron White said, “In general, the Police Department does not comment about incidents where there is impending or ongoing litigation.” He confirmed that Kleppe, Albrandt and Speelman still worked in the department. 

“We are confident that the Berkeley Police Department was negligent, and made negligent decisions before the shooting ever occurred, and that they confronted a man experiencing a mental health crisis and provoked a response from him that they ultimately used to justify shooting him in the face,” Slater said. “We look forward to vindicating his right to bring that claim in state court.”