Incredible Hulk Sues City

by Nick Welsh

A Santa Barbara man who claims city police illegally beat and
detained him after he exited a State Street bar on Halloween two
years ago has sued the City of Santa Barbara in federal court,
claiming civil rights violations. Shawn Comrie, an independent real
estate broker, claims that city police attacked him shortly after
he came out of O’Malley’s with his wife, brother-in-law, and
several other friends and relatives. At the time, Comrie was
dressed as the Incredible Hulk. According to City Attorney Steve
Wiley, Comrie sustained an abrasion while resisting arrest late
Halloween evening. But according to Comrie’s attorney Tom Beck,
officers told Comrie — who was inebriated at the time — to stop at
the crosswalk as he came out of O’Malley’s, and that Comrie did so
until the walk sign indicated he could proceed. As Comrie started
to cross the street, Beck said two officers knocked him to the
ground and two more attacked afterward. “To cover up, they charged
him with assaulting a police officer and resisting arrest,” Beck
stated. Comrie fought those charges in court and was acquitted in a
jury trial. Beck said Comrie wants the $40,000 he spent on legal
fees, plus $1 million Beck claims Comrie forfeited from a real
estate commission lost as an indirect result of the incident. The
Santa Barbara City Council met in closed session Tuesday afternoon
to discuss the case. Comrie has yet to make any demands; the city,
for its part, has not made any offers. The case is scheduled for
trial in federal court later this winter.