An East Cleveland Police officer was sentenced to one year in prison on multiple charges from incidents that occurred in 2022.
Brian Stoll was sentenced for the following charges:
- Vandalism
- Assault
- Obstructing official business
What happened?
Officers Tyler Mundson and Stoll, 31, were involved in an attempted traffic stop and pursuit on March 31, 2022.
Mundson attempted to stop a 32-year-old man in East Cleveland and was joined in his pursuit by Stoll, 33-year-old Daniel Toomer, and 32-year-old Kyle Wood, Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael O’Malley said.
The pursuit ended near Galewood Avenue and Ingalton Avenue in Cleveland, and a 32-year-old was arrested at the scene.
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During the pursuit, Wood initially reported that the victim hit the front of his cruiser. Body camera video would later show that Wood rammed the rear side of the victim’s vehicle, according to a news release from the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor.
Body camera video from the arrest revealed that the victim had parked his vehicle, had both hands out the window and was complying with the officer's commands.
According to the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor, Wood and Stoll then forcefully removed the victim from his vehicle and physically assaulted him by punching him and kneeing him in the head and torso while Mundson handcuffed him.
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After the arrest, Wood radioed dispatch and falsely said that the victim had hit the front of his cruiser and was resisting arrest. Mundson’s report reflected this narrative, Prosecutor O’Malley stated.
When he was back at the police station, Stoll took the victim’s phone, which the victim had been using to attempt to record the incident, and smashed it multiple times, bending it and cracking the screen, according to the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor.
In a separate incident on April 10, Toomer tried to execute a traffic stop on a 25-year-old victim while driving in East Cleveland, the prosecutor's release states. Wood and Stoll were in another cruiser, and Mundson was in a third cruiser. The pursuit ended near 152nd Street and Lakeshore Boulevard in Cleveland.
During the pursuit, officers initially reported that the victim hit Wood’s cruiser, causing him to spin out, according to the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor. Body camera video revealed that Wood was the one who hit the victim’s car, causing the crash. The video also showed that during the arrest, the victim had both hands up in the air and was not resisting the officers’ commands.
After the pursuit, Stoll forcefully removed the victim from the car, and Wood physically assaulted him, the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's release states. Stoll then forced the victim in the back of the police cruiser.
That’s when the victim called 911 from his phone after telling officers on the scene he needed medical attention, according to the prosecutor. Cleveland EMS arrived on the scene, but the East Cleveland officers sent EMS away.
Cleveland Police also responded to the scene, but East Cleveland officers obstructed their attempt to see the victim’s injuries. CPD officers then called EMS in spite of the East Cleveland officers’ refusal, and the victim was ultimately taken to a nearby hospital for his injuries.
