DES PERES, Mo. — On Monday, a lawsuit was filed against the City of Des Peres and four of its police officers. The complaint alleges Marvia Gray, a 68-year-old Creve Coeur resident, and her adult son, Derek Gray, were brutalized and arrested "without justification or provocation" while attempting to return a television at a Sam's Club store.
On the day the lawsuit was filed one of Marvia Gray's attorneys, Andrew M. Stroth, released a four-minute video of the incident, which occurred on March 23, filmed on the cellphone of a witness.
Stroth, who is the managing director for Chicago-based national civil rights firm Action Injury Law Group, said the video shows the brutality described in the lawsuit.
On Tuesday, Des Peres City Attorney Chris Graville released a 23-minute video of the incident. Des Peres Public Safety Director Eric Hall told 5 On Your Side the video is surveillance footage released by Sam's Club.
Graville also released this statement:
"It is the policy of the City of Des Peres, Missouri (the “City”), to withhold comment on litigation filed against the City, however, the City has been made aware of two partial video clips of the March 23, 2020 incident that have been released to the media. In the interest of transparency, the City is releasing the attached video of the incident so that the public can consider the entirety of the March 23, 2020 event prior to drawing any conclusions. The City will have no additional comments at this time."
While the cellphone video released Monday begins with both Grays already pinned to the ground by arresting officers, the surveillance footage shows the interaction between the Grays and store employees before officers arrived.
The surveillance footage also shows the first officer to arrive walked into the store with an employee who had been on the phone while watching the interaction between Derek Gray and other store employees.
William E. Dailey, of the Dailey Law Firm, is also representing Marvia Gray. He said it is important to note that only Marvia Gray is pressing charges.
"She is a small woman," Dailey said. "If you look at how the officer grabbed her from behind and flung her backwards, and this is one of our grandmothers. When I say 'our', I mean as a community. Not just black people, but in general, can you imagine your grandmother being treated that way?"
Gray's legal team said her lawsuit focuses on how harshly she feels she was treated. The complaint states she and her son suffered several injuries.
The statement released from the Des Peres Police Department said four officers, along with Derek Gray, had to be treated.
Gray, who said she feared her son was going to be killed during the incident, said she's lost faith in the police.
Following the release of the surveillance video, Stroth released this statement:
"The video speaks for itself. Marvia and Derek Gray were brutally attacked by officers from the Des Peres Police Department."
Hall said the city will likely make more information available and answer questions this week.