In the span of two months, Keith Puckett was visited or arrested twice by El Segundo police officers.
One encounter involved a visit to the home of a 46-year-old black man in El Segundo in the early morning hours by a group of police officers, and another involved a traffic stop in the evening by a single officer.
The two incidents, which occurred in 2021, are at the heart of a racial profiling and unlawful detention lawsuit filed Thursday by attorneys representing Puckett against the city of El Segundo.
The complaint seeks a jury trial, compensatory damages and an injunction prohibiting the city from engaging in unconstitutional activities. The plaintiff also requests that El Segundo adopt appropriate policies and training to prevent such activities in the future.
“Racism committed by law enforcement is illegal, unconstitutional, and harmful to all who experience it, even when it does not involve violence,” said Lauren Blas, Puckett’s attorney. in a report“Even if it doesn’t make national headlines, this is the kind of harassing, degrading and insidious behavior that Black people and people of color face every day.”
The city released a statement: “The City of El Segundo is committed to treating all people fairly, regardless of race, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or suspected involvement in criminal activity.”
A May 4 police investigation and an April 22, 2022, city human resources investigation into Puckett’s allegations found no wrongdoing.
Puckett is an active member of the community and has worked as a parent volunteer, PTA member, youth recreational sports coach, basketball coach at his son’s school, volunteer gatekeeper and lunchtime security support member, according to the lawsuit.
El Segundo published nearly 20 minutes of Video of every incident with dash cam and body cam.
The first incident occurred on January 21, 2021, outside Puckett’s home shortly after midnight, when police questioned him about a car driven by a friend of Puckett’s that was registered with stolen license plates.
Eventually, the officer explained to Puckett’s friend that there was likely a clerical error regarding his license plates that needed to be resolved quickly with the DMV, according to the footage.
“The incident of January 21st deeply disturbed Mr. Puckett,” the complaint says. “He was unable to return to sleep that night and had to take the next day off work.”
The second incident occurred on March 14 when Puckett was pulled over because an officer noticed his license plate light was not working.
A video and subsequent photo taken by Puckett appear to show a working light and a visible license plate.
The officer asked Puckett for his name and personal information.
Puckett accused the officer of stopping him solely because of his race.
Shortly after relaying his information, the officer thanked Puckett for his cooperation and wished him good night, according to video provided by the city.
“For the second time in two months, Mr. Puckett was deeply upset and unable to sleep, and he had to take the next day off work,” the complaint says. Although Mr. Puckett has not been arrested since, he says he fears further racial profiling.
But the city said in a statement that the videos showed that in “both instances, the officers behaved in a professional and respectful manner.”
However, Puckett filed complaints with the police chief and city manager, without receiving any resolution, according to the lawsuit.
After the second incident, Puckett sent an email to then-City Manager Scott Mitnick, the lawsuit says.
Puckett met with Mitnick to discuss in more detail what happened and spoke about the incidents during a Municipal council of March 16, 2021.
An email to Mitnick, who is now city manager of Moraga in Northern California, went unanswered.
Before the trial, Puckett’s legal team said, he had reached 11 agreements with the city regarding policing, anti-bias training and the treatment of the city’s black residents in an effort to avoid a trial.
The city said it treated Puckett’s allegations “seriously” and hired an outside firm to investigate.
The city said it had accepted all but one of the policy changes, which was to “deprioritize enforcement of obscured license plates.”
“The City of El Segundo is not willing to agree to cease certain practices when doing so would negatively impact public safety at a time of increasing concerns about crime,” the city said.
Puckett’s attorney, Blas, said the lawsuit “is a last-ditch effort to hold the city accountable for its unlawful conduct and to compel it to end racial profiling by ESPD.”
