FILE - Legal team members Harry M. Daniels, bottom center right, speaks during a media press conference as legal team member Roderick Taylor, from left, in suit, Natassia Woods, mother of Le'Keian Woods, and legal team member Marwan Porter listen along as family, friends and supporters gather Oct. 3, 2023, at the steps of the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office in Jacksonville, Fla. The U.S. Department of Justice has closed its review of the case of Woods, who was repeatedly punched, elbowed and kneed by police officers during a traffic stop in northeast Florida, officials said Friday, Nov. 3. A Justice Department criminal section chief wrote in a letter that the arrest of Woods does not give rise to a prosecutable violation of federal civil rights laws. (Corey Perrine/The Florida Times-Union via AP, File)
FILE - Legal team members Harry M. Daniels, bottom center right, speaks during a media press conference as legal team member Roderick Taylor, from left, in suit, Natassia Woods, mother of Le'Keian Woods, and legal team member Marwan Porter listen along as family, friends and supporters gather Oct. 3, 2023, at the steps of the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office in Jacksonville, Fla. The U.S. Department of Justice has closed its review of the case of Woods, who was repeatedly punched, elbowed and kneed by police officers during a traffic stop in northeast Florida, officials said Friday, Nov. 3. A Justice Department criminal section chief wrote in a letter that the arrest of Woods does not give rise to a prosecutable violation of federal civil rights laws. (Corey Perrine/The Florida Times-Union via AP, File)
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — The U.S. Department of Justice has closed its review of the case of a drug suspect who was repeatedly punched, elbowed and kneed by police officers during a traffic stop in northeast Florida, officials said Friday.
James Felte Jr., Justice Department criminal section chief, wrote in a letter to Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters that the arrest of Le’Keian Woods does not give rise to a prosecutable violation of federal civil rights laws.
Attorneys for Woods had asked for the federal investigation shortly after his Sept. 29 arrest.
“While it is unfortunate that the DOJ’s Special Litigation Section has chosen to close its review so quickly despite the clear evidence before them, it is not surprising,†attorney Harry Daniels said in a statement. “At the end of the day, that’s why we have the civil courts where a jury will ultimately decide justice.â€
Woods suffered a ruptured kidney, vomiting and migraine headaches following the confrontation, his attorneys said. Mug shots taken after the arrest showed him with both eyes swollen shut and bruises and cuts on his face.
Waters has said because Woods appeared to resist arrest even after he was zapped with a stun gun and pinned to the ground. Officers knew Woods had once been accused of murder, was on probation for armed robbery and had been connected to firearms and drug trafficking when they gave chase after a traffic stop, Waters said.
