Cops accuse an innocent sleeping 13-year-old boy of car theft and force him to be mauled by a K-9.

A 13-year-old boy was asleep in the backyard when he was attacked by a police K-9. The boy was wrongly accused of being involved in car theft. The Cedar Rapids police department was slapped with a lawsuit this week by the boy's mother. The attack unfolded on August 12, 2020, and was captured on police body cameras. The lawsuit asserts excessive force was used by officers involved in the arrest, as well as K- 9 officer Nathan Trimble and his canine partner, and that there was negligence in police canine training and racial discrimination that amounted to reckless disregard for the rights and safety of others, including the boy, according to the lawsuit. The police department said they were pursuing a suspect in a stolen vehicle investigation who may have been armed. The suspect was eventually captured, however, as they searched for him, officers came upon the boy and the dog mauled his arm, despite the fact that he was unarmed and posed no threat to the dog. "I grabbed ahold of Ace's collar and removed him," Trimble said in the report.

The boy's injuries were so bad that he wasn't immediately brought to jail. He was brought to the hospital and as doctor's worked on his arm, police realized he was innocent. The boy was then released to his mother without charges. The family is seeking an unspecified amount for physical and emotional injuries and damages. The lawsuit states the boy was assumed guilty, and mauled by the police dog because of his race and appearance.