Lawsuit Alleges Civil Rights Violations

A Carrollton man is accusing law enforcement officials of unlawfully entering and searching his home, then arresting him without probable cause.  Those are the statements of Spencer Shannon, 26, in a civil rights lawsuit filed Friday in Carroll County.  The suit claims Highway Patrol trooper Michael Weakley, deputy Dustin Southard, and deputy Jason Rhodes violated Shannon’s fourth and fourteenth amendment rights.

The officers actions on the night of September 10, 2011 were in response to an ATV accident earlier in the evening.  One person was injured in the crash.  Shannon claims that because no search or arrest warrants were obtained, the officers did not have the right to enter his home after the incident.

Shannon was charged with leaving the scene of an accident, but later pleaded guilty to only operating an all-terrain vehicle without the proper equipment.  Shannon is requesting that the outcome of the lawsuit be decided by a jury.