Civil rights lawsuit filed after teen's death following encounter with Vegas police

LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The family of Anthony Garrett has filed a lawsuit almost two years after the teenager died following an encounter with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.

The incident began on Droubay Drive near Broadbent Boulevard and Wetlands Park Lane on July 12, 2017.

Police say they received a call about three teenagers breaking into they home. When they arrived upon the scene, they located an 11-year-old boy and placed him under arrest. Then, they began chasing Garrett, who was 16 years old at the time.

They chased him into his own home, and the teenager reportedly went into a bathroom. Police say they saw him with a gun and ordered him to put it down. However, Garrett allegedly ran into a bedroom and closed the door. Shortly after, police heard a gunshot and began treating the situation as a barricade.

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Several hours later, they entered the room and found the teenager with a gunshot wound. At the time, police said that the gunshot wound was self-inflicted but did not know if it was intentional or accidental.

The police initially reported that the teen was dead. However, they corrected themselves later and said he was transported to University Medical Center. The coroner confirmed on July 14 that the boy had died. The coroner ruled his death a suicide, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

The boy's mother, Taccara Brooks, has retained attorney E. Brent Bryson and a civil rights and wrongful death lawsuit has been filed against LVMPD.

"Many questions need to be resolved regarding the facts and circumstances during this incident," said Bryson.

The lawsuit alleges that police officers with LVMPD failed to render medical care in a timely manner and allowed a K-9 dog to drag and bite Garrett without lawful justification, subjecting the teenager to the usage of excessive force.

The lawsuit also accuses of LVMPD of tolerating the use of excessive force and being negligent in its hiring, training and supervision of employees.

Additionally, the lawsuit claims that the police officers withheld medical attention and left him to "bleed and ultimately expire."

"I never knew my son was shot in the head for seven hours until I saw them drag him out of the house. I had no idea a dog bit my son," said Brooks.

"We don't understand why he was in the house for seven hours if he had a wound," said one of Garrett's aunts.

The lawsuit also says that LVMPD made no effort to retrain the officers involved after the incident to "avoid an unreasonable risk of harm to the citizens of Clark County" and that they breached their duty of care.

The lawsuit is asking for seven million dollars and trial by jury.

"I want answers. I want to know what happened to my son," said Brooks.