The governor of Alabama has apologized to the Indian government after a 57-year-old Indian grandfather was left partially paralyzed during an altercation with police officers two weeks ago.
Sureshbhai Patel, who is from India and was visiting his son, was walking in his son's neighborhood when he was stopped by police who said they had heard reports of a suspicious person walking on neighbors' driveways and looking into people's garages, according to Al.com.
"The caller, who lives in the neighborhood, did not recognize the subject and thought him to be suspicious," a statement from Madison Police said.
Since Patel doesn't speak English, "there was a communication barrier" with the police officers.
"The subject began putting his hands in his pockets," reads a police statement obtained by Al.com. "Officers attempted to pat the subject down and he attempted to pull away. The subject was forced to the ground, which resulted in injury to his neck that required paramedics, hospitalization, and later, cervical fusion surgery to fuse two vertebrae due to swelling in the spine."
But according to Patel, he never strayed from the sidewalk, neither did he pull away when police patted him down. Additionally, his son told CNN Affiliate WHNT that his father tried to communicate with officers, telling them "No English. Indian," when they approached and also gave them his address while pointing to his residence.
A week later, footage from police cameras corroborated Patel's version of the story, showing that he had been detained and shoved to the ground.
Following the encounter, the 57-year-old victim has been left temporarily paralyzed in Huntsville Hospital. Even if he makes full recovery, the medical bills will cost $100,000, lawyer Henry F. Sherrod told Al Jazeera America.
On Tuesday, governor Rob Bentley apologized to Indian general consul Ajit Kumar, expressing "sincere apology for this tragic incident to your government, Mr. Patel, and the citizens of India who reside and work in our state."
"I deeply regret the unfortunate use of excessive force by the Madison Police Department... and for the injuries sustained by Mr. Patel."
Meanwhile, Patel has filed a legal case alleging that race played a part in the incident. But the unidentified officer who faces assault charges has pleaded not guilty, BBC News reported.
