June 13th, 2019. Your team, the Toronto Raptors has just defeated the Golden State Warriors and are the NBA Champions.
As team president you are excited, and you cannot wait to congratulate your guys. So, you stand up, straighten your suit, show the first security guard your badge, think you have clearance so you tuck your badge in a suit pocket and walk confidently to the edge of the court and then this happens…
You are pushed and “Back the f--- up” is shouted at you by a Deputy from the Alameda County Sheriff department.
You ask… “Why did you push me?”. “I’m President of the Raptors.” You show your credentials (again) because all you want to do is join in on the celebration with your team. You are visibly shocked by what is happening.
You attempt again to get on the court, and you’re shoved again. This time you push back, because enough is enough right. The incident is caught on video but withheld from the public for well over a year after it happened.
The Sheriff initially wanted you charged with battery of an office and ultimately, they declined to press charges after a month-long investigation. Do remember all along they purportedly had the full video, that was just released in August 2020.
After not going back to work for well over a year and filing a workers compensation claim that reportedly paid him well over $220K in Feb 2020 the sheriff’s deputy filed a federal lawsuit against you, the Raptors and the company that owns the team, claiming you shoved him and caused injuries to his head, jaw, chin and teeth, with claims of potential permanent disability.
In Feb 2020 a TV station films the ‘supposedly’ hurt deputy sheriff lifting boxes and using a power saw at his home. In March 2020 it is disclosed the deputy sheriff had a previous insurance fraud case …but the case against you persists and you are the villain, because you pushed back.
You countersue when the video is finally released as it proves you were clearly not the aggressor, nor the instigator. It confirms your side of the story, well over a year after the incident occurred. Now the whole world knows how unfairly you were treated, and everyone can empathize and comment, but you lost an irreplaceable moment. Your first NBA championship as President of a team spoiled. Your first court celebration ruined. All because someone saw you and ONLY saw your black skin and thought, you can’t possibly belong here.
Can you countersue someone for that? Black Lives Matter. They just do.