A man who says he was attacked by three Broward Sheriff's Office dogs and suffered "horrific, permanent scarring" because of the bites filed a lawsuit against the deputies on Friday that alleges excessive force and seeks unspecified damages.
In April 2004, John Barton, 40, led police on a car chase through Margate, Coral Springs, Parkland, Coconut Creek, Pompano Beach and Deerfield Beach. He was wanted because, earlier in the day, a police officer said he saw Barton drop a clear plastic bag filled with suspected cocaine at a convenience store in Margate.
The three Broward Sheriff's Office canine deputies, Frank Biro, Daniel Olarte and Frank Maio, have since been exonerated by the department of allegations they used excessive force.
Barton's attorney, Wayne Koppel, said when Barton, who was unarmed, finally did stop his car in Deerfield Beach because it broke down, he held his arms out of the car window to surrender. He said one police dog was sent in through the driver side, biting Barton and tearing "open the flesh of Barton's arm to the bone," according to the lawsuit. During the attack, a second dog was sent in through the passenger side.
"It's almost like the dogs are doing a tug of war," said Koppel.
"A chew toy," Barton mumbled during a press conference at his attorney's office.
When Barton was taken out of the car and handcuffed facedown on the ground, a surveillance tape at a car dealership had captured the incident and appears to show a third dog was then released.
The lawsuit claims the police action was "barbaric, unnecessary and excessive use of force" and that "no one offered first aid to Barton's bleeding wounds, nor did they even bother to roll him over so that he could get his face out of the blood on the roadway."
According to the police investigation, Barton was taken to North Broward Medical Center and treated for low blood pressure and several deep injuries to his arms and left leg, including exposed muscle tissue.
Canine deputies had reported during the investigation that Barton seemed to pose a threat.
"As I made it to the rear of [Barton's] vehicle, I heard [Barton] advise that if I was to get any closer he would kill me," Biro wrote in his report.
In January, Barton pleaded no contest to three charges arising from the pursuit and cocaine possession, and served 180 days in jail and is now on probation.
"It was inhumane," he said. "They were eating my skin. What I did was wrong, but what they did to me was worse. It's something I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy."
Barton is now living in Tamarac with a friend. He said he has been unable to return to his job as a construction worker.
BSO spokesman Hugh Graf said the department would fight the allegations.
"Our attorney will strongly defend the agency in this case," he said, adding that Barton was arrested earlier this month for violation of his probation.
Since the alleged incident, the deputies have all been reassigned, Graf said.
Biro is now a property crimes detective in Pompano Beach, Maio is on road patrol in Pompano Beach and Olarte works at Port Everglades with a dog that is used for detecting explosives.
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