Lawsuit: 911 mix-up leads to shooting

Jan. 4—An Elliott County man has filed a lawsuit against a 911 dispatcher, the Elliott County Fiscal Court and multiple law enforcement officers after he says police shot him when they responded to the wrong address.

Per a civil suit filed just days ago in U.S. District Court, the then 61-year-old widower was at his rural Sandy Hook residence, eating a bowl of chili on a dreary New Year's Day evening in 2023 before his house was descended upon by what he assumed were intruders.

According to the complaint, the man, not expecting company at his home at the end of an isolated gravel driveway on Bill Ison Road, reported hearing a loud, repeating bang at his front door and worried someone was attempting to break in.

Court records indicate the man got up from his chair and retrieved a small handgun that sat near his front door.

When the man glanced through the curtain and saw "several bright moving lights," blinding him, his belief that he faced "a home invasion by multiple assailants," solidified, the initial filing states.

Once the man threw open his door and yelled for the possible burglars to get away, "he was shot multiple times while in his doorway" by high-velocity weapons, per the document.

The now-wounded man returned fire in accordance to Kentucky's self-defense laws, defending himself and his home from an attack, according to his lawyers.

However, the man had unknowingly fired back at multiple Kentucky State Police troopers and an Elliott County Sheriff's Deputy.

The caught-off-guard homeowner, who moments before was eating a bowl of chili in his chair, was not the only party on scene who had just fired a gun over a mix-up, per records.

According to court records, an Elliott County 911 dispatcher received a call about 15 minutes prior to the shooting from a person reporting that children came to her home for help, as their mother was involved in a violent domestic dispute.

The dispatcher contacted an Elliott County Sheriff's Deputy to respond, who then called KSP for backup, as it was reported the aggressor of the domestic incident had a firearm, per the suit.

The plaintiff alleges that when the convoy of law enforcement approached his address, they did not have their emergency lights or sirens activated, they concealed their vehicles by parking "some distance down the driveway, obscured behind underbrush and a briar thicket," and did not announce themselves as law enforcement when they knocked on the door as "blinding" light obscured any badges or identifiable uniforms.

At the scene of the shooting on Bill Ison Road, the homeowner, "bleeding profusely" from extensive injuries to both arms, "stumbled" to a picnic table near his doorway and law enforcement began applying tourniquets and called for EMS.

Meanwhile at dispatch, a caller from 40 B. Ison Road (9.9 miles away from the plaintiff's home on Bill Ison Road) called 911 stating an intoxicated family member had pulled a gun on another family member, causing the dispatcher to realize they had sent the police to the wrong address after the first neighbor's call.

The Daily Independent reached out to Elliott County dispatch, who verified Bill Ison Road and B. Ison Road as two separate places, corroborated by online map services, which show the two roads about 20 minutes away from one another by car.

The lawsuit says on arrival to the Bill Ison Road home — across town from the ongoing domestic dispute — officers contacted dispatch with registration plates on vehicles in the plaintiff's driveway, but the "associated name did not match the names given to the dispatcher as individuals involved in the domestic dispute."

The suit further alleges that even with this information, the dispatcher failed to recontact the original 911 caller to confirm the address and "the officers failed to confirm the accuracy of the dispatcher's address, as is required procedure," before the second 911 call confirmed the mistake.

The suit says the dispatcher acknowledged their negligence that evening, telling Elliott County's sheriff, "We have got a mess and it is my fault."

After 9 p.m., EMS was cleared to treat the plaintiff, who had been shot by police in both arms using a .9 mm and .556 ammunition, adding the plaintiff's arm bones were exposed and "tissues (were) hanging out of the wounds."

No officers were reported as injured.

The plaintiff was later transported from a nearby hospital to UK in Lexington for surgery, where he stayed for more than two weeks, per the filing.

During his 18-day hospital stay in Lexington, the man said he was under 24-hour guard by an armed KSP trooper and no visitors were allowed during his recovery unless they were approved by KSP. However, the suit alleges when family members called to inquire about the plaintiff's status, they were told he was not a patient at UK.

The "(plaintiff) was intimidated by the constant presence of a posted and armed guard in his room. (Plaintiff) felt that the presence of the officers sent a message to the hospital staff that he was a dangerous criminal," the suit reads, describing the man as having no criminal history, no history of violence or history of substance abuse.

During his hospital stay, court records indicate the man was served with an arrest citation 12 days after the incident, charging him with four counts of wanton endangerment, each class D felonies.

The citation, listed as an exhibit in the court filings, does not list an arrest date and states the man "presented a firearm" at law enforcement as reasoning for the charges.

In March 2023, the man appeared in Elliott County District Court before District Judge Rupert Wilhoit for a preliminary hearing to determine if probable cause existed to continue prosecution.

After hearing testimony from a KSP detective, Wilhoit determined probable cause "lacking" and released the plaintiff.

In October 2023, KSP presented the case to a grand jury for indictment, but they also declined to issue criminal charges.

The suit says the agency "initiat(ed) these criminal charges without probable cause ... in an effort to conceal their own misdeeds."

Following the moot criminal charges, the plaintiff has reportedly undergone five surgeries, has lost range of motion, grip and feeling in his right arm and hand.

His left arm reportedly has numbness extending from the elbow to hand and he lost full function of his left wrist and has no control of his left fingers, per the suit.

Attorneys wrote the plaintiff describes his left hand as a "claw" and still experiences pain and suffering one year after the incident.

To summarize, the lawsuit states law enforcement violated their own procedures when responding to the wrong address by not announcing themselves and infringed on the plaintiff's constitutional rights by falsely imprisoning him in his own hospital room when he faced no criminal charges for a week-plus.

Due to the alleged negligence by the 911 dispatcher, the failure of law enforcement to verify the address before opening fire, their stealthy arrival and the following "malicious prosecution," the plaintiff seeks $500,000 from each named defendant, compensatory damages for the pain and suffering, compensation for medical expenses and attorney fees.

The suit names the individual 911 dispatcher, the Elliott County Sheriff's deputy, three Post 8 KSP troopers, the Elliott County Fiscal Court (liable due to the dispatcher's alleged negligence) and other unspecified KSP troopers — totaling a multi-million-dollar settlement if the plaintiff is awarded the $500,000 judgment for each person.

The multi-million-dollar judgment from the individuals acting under the color of law would be in addition to medical expenses, compensatory damages for pain and suffering and lawyer fees.

The plaintiff, represented by Ned Pillersdorf of Prestonsburg and Michael Campbell of Morehead, requested a jury trial.

By federal court requirement, the respondents have 21 days after receiving their summons to provide a response or they risk default judgement in favor of the plaintiff.

Court records indicate all summons were issued on Tuesday.