Jonathan Meister

My cousin Jonathan caught meningitis when he was 2 years old which caused total deafness. He adjusted well to this disability and most of the family learned American Sign Language (ASL) to communicate with him. Jonathan learned to read at an early age and the world opened up to him. When texting came of age, he kept his phone on him, learning to text a mile a minute and this also helped him to communicate with the hearing. Jonathan has his masters in architecture, is a born again Christian and has never been in trouble with the law until last February.  On Feb 13th, 2013 Jonathan was on his way to Bible study but stopped by a friends house to pick up his snowboard equipment for the weekend. The home owner knew he was coming and had put Jonathan's equipment outside for him to pick it up. What happened next was pretty awful. Below the actual complaint:

Mr. Meister, shortly before this incident, shared a residence with two brothers, Daniel and David Gavrilovic. They moved to separate residences after the Gavrilovic brothers bought the home located at 3559 West 147th Street in the City ofHawthorne.26.

Because there was repair and renovation work being done inside the home at 3559 West 147th Street home on February 13, 2013, the Gavrilovic brothers stored belongings on the back porch, accessible through a gate, but within a walled-in backyard. Mr. Meister had some of his personal property stored there as well.27.

Mr. Meister had made plans to visit family and go snowboarding in Utah, and had a plane reservation for the morning of February 14, 2013. He made arrangements with Daniel Gavrilovic to pick up his snowboard and winter clothes, and some other property of his mixed in with the Gavrilovic brothers’ belongings on the back porch at the 147th Street address. Daniel was not planning to be there at the time, but it made no difference because Mr. Meister knew he could hop over a low fence(about four feet high), go through the gate that Daniel was leaving unlocked for him, and retrieve his belongings from the porch.28.

Mr. Meister went by the Gavrilovic’s 147th Street home around 6:30 p.m., just as it was getting dark, so there would still be some light available, and he would still have time to attend his regular Bible study class. While he was going through boxes on the back porch, on information and belief, one or more concerned neighbors looked over the wall and called out to him. Mr. Meister did not respond. He could not see them because he was facing away and could not hear them because he is profoundly deaf.29.

The HPD was called to investigate what were mistakenly, but understandably, perceived as “suspicious circumstances.”30.

HPD officers Jeffrey Salmon and Jeffrey Tysl arrived first. They watched Mr. Meister as he walked through the gate, out of the backyard, carrying some of his personal belongings to his car. When Mr. Meister saw the officers, he put his belongings down and, while still standing in the yard, behind the low fence, attempted to convey that he cannot hear by gesturing to his ear. Mr. Meister, like many other people who are deaf or hard of hearing, communicates primarily in ASL and does not speak effectively. He requires extra space for hand and arm gestures to communicate, especially when the people with whom he is trying to communicate are not familiar with sign language.31.

Mr. Meister understood the body language of Officers Salmon and Tysl as directing that Mr. Meister come to their side of the fence, and that there would be no problem if he did so. Mr. Meister trusted that the officers understood that he was deaf.32.

Following the officers’ instructions, Mr. Meister left his friends’ private property – where he had permission to be – and hopped the low fence, onto the sidewalk. Next he walked over to the officers, as they were directing him to do, all the while trying to explain with calm hand gestures what was going on.33.

Before Mr. Meister could communicate his reasons for being at the Gavrilovic’s home, however, Officers Salmon and Tysl grabbed Mr. Meister’s wrists and turned him around so that he could not see them. Because he is deaf, Mr. Meister depends on using his hands while facing a person to communicate. The officers’ sudden aggression, which both caused pain and interfered with his ability to communicate, caused Mr. Meister reflexively to pull his hands away, hop back over the fence, and step

toward the gate. He was not resisting in any way, he only wanted to create some space so that he could communicate with his hands while facing the officers because he did not have his cell phone, which he usually uses to communicate, on his person at that moment. The officers jumped over the low fence themselves -- one falling on his face in the process -- grabbed Mr. Meister and pushed him up against a wall.34.

According to the officers’ reports, Officer Salmon tried to put a potentially lethal carotid choke hold around Mr. Meister’s neck, and after being unable to do so, kneed him twice in the abdomen.35.

Officers Salmon and Tysl then grabbed Mr. Meister’s arms and shoved him against the Gavrilovics’ locked-up car parked in the driveway.36.

At some point, HPD officers Erica Bristow and Mark Hultgren joined the beating of Mr. Meister. After being unable to pull Mr. Meister to the ground (Mr.Meister played club rugby at Ohio State and instinctively tries to stay on his feet when being tackled), Office Tysl punched him in the face repeatedly while Officer Salmon shot darts from a TASER Model X26 electrical control device into Mr. Meister’s left side, causing five seconds of rapidly pulsing electrical shocks. Officer Salmon reported that the X26 current had the desired result and Mr. Meister fell face down.37.

While Mr. Meister was on the ground, Officer Salmon kicked Mr. Meister four times in the stomach, and Officer Hultgren kicked Mr. Meister twice more in the side. Officer Tysl elbowed Mr. Meister in the face repeatedly, Officer Bristow picked up the X26 (which Officer Salmon had dropped) and delivered several more shocks.38.

Officer Salmon kneeled on Mr. Meister’s back, using body weight to push him into the ground. Officer Salmon then took the X26 back from Officer Bristow, and pulled the trigger to give Mr. Meister another excruciatingly painful five seconds of punishing shocks.39.

Officer Hultgen pulled out a second X26 and “drive stunned” Mr. Meister repeatedly, deliberately burning his flesh with electrical current, while Officer Tysl put Meister into a second carotid choke hold and knocked him unconscious. Mr. Meister was then handcuffed and placed under arrest for assaulting the police officers.40.

Other officers took Mr. Meister to get medical treatment.41.

After receiving medical clearance, Mr. Meister was taken to the police station, where he was finally provided the opportunity to communicate in writing and was provided his cell phone so that he could text for help. He was told that he would be held on $20,000.00 bail but later cited and released.

Jonathan originally only asked for an apology from the 4 police officers who so cruelly beat and tasered him but they refused. The 4 officers beat him, punching and kicking him along with tasering him over and over even while laying stomach down on the ground and handcuffed, finally beating him into unconsciousness. Then they hauled him to the hospital and tried to claim HE attacked them! Google Jonathan Meister for the entire story.

The family was asked to keep this quiet hoping the Hawthorne Police department would do the right thing but it just didn't happen.