Defendant in Taser lawsuit pleads guilty

By Emily Kaiser in Police

Fri., Nov. 6 2009 @ 8:59AM

The 18-year-old man suing the City of Minneapolis after the use of a Taser during an arrest in April has pleaded guilty to a gross misdemeanor for the crime that led to his arrest.

Rolando Ruiz was charged with first-degree damage to property, a felony. He pleaded guilty to a gross misdemeanor and sentenced to 62 days, two years probation and a $50 fine. He has already served his time behind bars.

On April 30, police say Ruiz standing on a planter near the Second Precinct headquarters. He was accused of throwing a landscaping brick at a police officer's personal car.

Ruiz is suing the city for civil rights violations after the dashboard cam caught the officer using a Taser on his neck while he had his hands on the squad car. Minneapolis Police Chief Tim Dolan has asked the FBI to review the tape.

Ruiz spoke to WCCO this week about the incident. Check out the video here.