Excessive force lawsuit filed against 4 area officers for 2022 arrest at St. Louis Walgreens

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) - A lawsuit filed Thursday in federal court accuses three St. Louis officers and one officer from Berkeley of excessive use of force against a disabled woman in November 2022. The lawsuit also names the City of St. Louis and Walgreens as defendants.

The lawsuit accuses officers of violating Del-Rio Swink’s Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment rights, violating the Americans with Disabilities Act, and negligence while arresting her at a St. Louis Walgreens and transporting her to an area hospital. The officers are accused of injuring Swink as they arrested her and drove her to an area hospital.

The ArchCity Defenders are representing Swink, who they say was assaulted by an off-duty Berkeley Police officer while picking up medication at a Walgreens located at the 4200 block of Lindell Boulevard on Nov. 4, 2022. The lawsuit also names three SLMPD officers as defendants; SLMPD said two of the officers are still employed with the department.

According to court documents, Swink was picking up medication for a dental issue when she expressed displeasure at a pharmacy assistant spitting sunflower seeds into a cup, resulting in a “short argument,” which was resolved. The on-duty pharmacist assisted Swink in filling her medication, with Swink then sitting in the waiting room for her medication.

According to a release from ArchCity Defenders, a Berkeley police officer who was working as a security guard for Allied Services, approached Swink to remove her from the store. The guard said that Swink was trespassing in the store and would need to leave, to which Swink asked why she was being removed and that she was waiting for her medication.

Court documents say this caused the guard to become “agitated and confrontational.”

Swink asked the guard to properly identify himself, to which the court documents say he responded by identifying himself as a Berkeley Police Officer and showed Swink the back of his uniform that says “police” in bold letters. He was not on duty as a Berkeley Police Officer at this time.

Documents say that Swink tried to explain the argument with the pharmacy assistant to the guard, who toppled her out of her chair onto the floor. Swink told the guard that she is disabled at this time, the lawsuit says.

Documents state that Swink was not moving towards the guard, had not made any threats towards him or held any weapons, and had not presented any physical threat toward the guard or anyone else at the Walgreens. Swink believed she was having a conversation with the guard and was not warned about physical force before being pushed to the floor.

Swink reported feeling intense pain after being pushed from the chair. She also acknowledged her arrest when presented by the guard, documents state. During the arrest, Swink told the guard she could not move her hands behind her back for handcuffs as she suffered from peripheral neuropathy and degenerative joint disease, limiting her mobility. Documents say this then led the guard to “dragging (Swink) across the floor” in an attempt to handcuff her in front of her body.

Documents say that from the floor, Swink tried to tell the guard she was in severe pain in her back and hip, and needed medical help. He ignored her and continued to drag her by the arms. Documents say he only stopped dragging Swink by the arm when a bystander said something, approaching the guard and pointing.

SLMPD responded to the Walgreens at the guards’ request. Swink remained handcuffed on the floor of the pharmacy until officers with SLMPD arrived, documents state.

Court documents note that Swink cannot sit or lie down on hard surfaces without pain due to her peripheral neuropathy. With Swink being injured at this time, it states that this created severe pain for her.

The first SLMPD arrived at the Walgreens and reportedly told Swink to stop having an attitude. “You know what attitude I’m talking about,” it’s reported that the officer said to Swink. “Cut the s----, sit up, sit in the chair.”

The lawsuit then alleges that the officer pulled Swink up to her protest in pain and then pushed her into a waiting room chair. The lawsuit states Swink requested an ambulance because she was in pain, but her request was ignored by responding officers. Officers then transported Swink to an area hospital themselves over her protests to take an ambulance instead.

According to court documents, Swink struggled to get into the back of the police van and requested help, but the responding officers did not help her. This resulted in her not being secured properly in the back of the van.

On the drive, the lawsuit accuses a second SLMPD officer of " turning quickly around corners and accelerating and stopping rapidly.” These actions caused Swink to fall and get injured.

According to the lawsuit, when they arrived at the hospital, Swink attempted to get out of the van herself and managed to get one foot out but paused because she was in pain. She explained to the officer who drove that she would put her foot down when she could, and explained again that she has peripheral neuropathy and degenerative joint disease.

To that, the officer said, “You’ve said that like half a dozen times, but you’re still going to have to put your foot down.”

A second SLMPD officer wheeled Swink into the hospital in a wheelchair that Swink had to request multiple times before one was offered to her, the lawsuit says. After wheeling Swink into the hospital, the officer wrote Swink a citation for general peace disturbance, but no charges were ever brought against her.

The lawsuit states that Swink filed a complaint with the St. Louis City Civilian Oversight Board on Nov. 9, 2022, five days after the incident. On June 25, 2024, she was notified that SLMPD’s Department of Internal Affairs found her allegations were sustained and that the officers involved would be disciplined.

The lawsuit states that Swink’s disability has worsened significantly since the incident and has undergone intensive medical treatment in an attempt to return her condition to its manageable state from before the Nov. 4, 2022, incident.

“None of the police officers involved took Ms. Swink seriously when she told them she was disabled and needed help. This is disturbing not just for Ms. Swink, but because many of the people police officers interact with are individuals living with disabilities,” Ebony McKeever a staff attorney at ArchCity Defenders, said in a press release.

Both SLMPD and the city of St. Louis said they do not comment on pending litigation when asked for comment. A representative for Walgreens said they deny any liability or wrongdoing. First Alert 4 has reached out to the Berkeley Police Department and, as of publication time, has not heard back.

According to the lawsuit, Del-Rio Swink, the woman suing accuses law enforcement of breaking several laws while arresting and taking her to the hospital.

Swink says she was picking up medication at Walgreens when an off-duty Berkeley police officer took her down and dragged her across the floor during an arrest.

According to court documents, SLMPD officers failed to accommodate Swink’s disabilities while taking her to the hospital.

She says she was further injured during the transport.

Both SLMPD and the city of St. Louis said they do not comment on pending litigation when asked for comment. A representative for Walgreens said they deny any liability or wrongdoing. First Alert 4 has reached out to the Berkeley Police Department and, as of publication time, has not heard back.