After Viral Arrest, Tuskegee Coach Announces Lawsuit Against Morehouse
The viral arrest of Tuskegee University’s basketball coach after a Jan. 31 game at Morehouse College has now resulted in a lawsuit against the all-male HBCU. Morehouse had just beaten Tuskegee 77-69 and were preparing for the end-of-game handshake line.
Reports indicate that Morehouse College football players attempted to disrupt that process, and Tuskegee coach Benjy Taylor can be seen in the video asking security to intervene. After exchanging words, the Morehouse campus police officer handcuffed Taylor and led him across the court. He was later released without charges.
The suit names the college and campus police officers R. Clark and M. Roberson as defendants.
Civil rights attorneys Harry Daniels and John Burris and Gerald Griggs and Gregory Reynald Williams are representing Taylor in the lawsuit. Taylor said he was trying to ensure everyone was safe during the postgame handshake line. “I was simply trying to get the football team out of the handshake line as they were following right behind me and the team, yelling obscenities.
It was a very dangerous situation,” he said. In a statement to @TheFieldOf68 after the incident, Taylor said he was “at a loss for words, and I am upset about how I was violated and treated today. For my players, my family and people of Tuskegee to witness that is heartbreaking for me.