Clifford Owensby Lawsuit: $125K Settlement and DOJ Reforms

The Clifford Owensby lawsuit settlement resolved in September 2023, when the Dayton City Commission voted unanimously to pay Owensby $125,000 to end his federal civil rights case against the city and the two officers who pulled him from his car during a 2021 traffic stop. The city admitted no liability. A separate settlement between Dayton and the U.S. Department of Justice, announced three months earlier, required the police department to overhaul how it treats people with disabilities.

What Happened During the Traffic Stop

On September 30, 2021, two Dayton officers stopped Owensby’s white Audi in the Dayton View neighborhood. A narcotics detective had reported the car parked outside a suspected drug house on West Grand Avenue, and the stated reason for the stop was a suspected window tint violation. Officers cited Owensby’s prior felony drug and weapon history to justify calling a K-9 unit for a free-air sniff.¹²

Department policy required all occupants to exit the vehicle before the K-9 search could begin. Owensby, 39, told officers repeatedly that he was paraplegic and could not comply, and he asked them to call a supervisor. They did not.³ Officers offered to lift him out; he refused and gripped the steering wheel. One officer then grabbed him by his dreadlocks and arms, pulled him from the car, forced him to the ground, handcuffed him, and dragged him to a cruiser. Bodycam video released by the city about a week later shows Owensby shouting “I’m a paraplegic, bro!” and screaming for help.¹

Owensby was not booked or charged with any crime tied to the encounter. Officers seized roughly $22,450 in cash from the floorboard on suspicion of drug involvement, but no drug charges followed.¹

What the Lawsuit Claimed

Owensby first sued the City of Dayton in November 2021 seeking the return of the seized cash.⁴ On December 29, 2021, he filed a broader federal lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Owensby v. City of Dayton et al., Case No. 3:2021cv00343. The suit named the city and the two officers, Wayne Hammock and Vincent Carter, as defendants.⁵

The complaint brought claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 alleging excessive force, unlawful arrest, and discrimination, together with claims under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Owensby sought compensatory damages for pain, suffering, emotional distress, and impaired quality of life.⁶

Terms of the $125,000 Settlement

On September 27, 2023, the Dayton City Commission voted unanimously to pay $125,000 to resolve all pending litigation. The figure included the return of the roughly $22,450 the city had already seized, so the net new outlay was about $102,500. The city admitted no liability and Owensby’s claims were dismissed.⁷

Barbara Doseck, Dayton’s director of law, said in a statement: “Mr. Owensby’s claims have been dismissed and there is no admission of liability by the city. While I believe that Dayton would have ultimately prevailed, litigation can be lengthy and unpredictable. I believe this settlement is in the best interests of all involved.”⁷

Dr. Derrick Foward, president of the Dayton NAACP, read the outcome differently. “While the city’s law director stated there was no admission of liability by the city, the six-figure settlement along with the city’s settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice says it all … Guilty,” he said. He also said he hoped “the next aggressive behavior of these officers does not lead to a deadly encounter, but rather termination of employment.”⁸

The Separate DOJ Settlement and Required Reforms

The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division ran its own investigation into whether the Dayton Police Department violated Title II of the ADA. It concluded that the department had provided Owensby with “unequal, and ineffective services” and had failed to reasonably modify its policies when officers ordered him out and forcibly removed him without his mobility aid.⁹

On June 12, 2023, the DOJ announced a settlement agreement with the city and the police department. It is not a consent decree and includes no admission of wrongdoing. Its core requirements are:

New policies governing the removal of people with mobility limitations from vehicles, with all department policies brought into compliance with the ADA’s reasonable-modification standard.¹⁰
ADA-specific training for all officers at least once a year, developed in partnership with Disability Rights Ohio.¹¹
Regular progress reports to the DOJ on implementation.¹⁰

The agreement runs three years from its effective date, keeping it in force until roughly June 2026.¹²⁷¹³

What Happened to the Officers

Neither Hammock nor Carter was suspended, terminated, or reassigned because of the Owensby incident. A department internal investigation, released in January 2022, concluded that the stop, the K-9 request, and the force used were justified and in compliance with departmental policy at the time; the hair-pulling was described as “visually offensive to some people” but at the “low end of the force spectrum.”¹⁴ Both officers were faulted for muting their body cameras after Owensby was in the cruiser, and Hammock was separately faulted for an inappropriate comment. Each received a training memorandum, with no suspension or loss of pay.¹³

Both remained with the department. As of a 2025 Ohio Supreme Court case involving an unrelated traffic stop, Hammock had moved to the homicide unit and Carter was a detective in the narcotics bureau.¹⁵

1
CBS News. Clifford Owensby Dayton Ohio Police Disabled Driver Pulled From Car
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WLWT. Bodycam Dayton Police Pull Paraplegic Man From Car Clifford Owensby
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WYSO. Better Policies Training Part of Dayton Police DOJ Settlement
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WDTN. Clifford Owensby Sues Dayton Demands Return of Money Seized During Traffic Stop
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Justia. Owensby v. City of Dayton et al
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WDTN. Clifford Owensby Timeline Arrest Investigation and Lawsuits
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WHIO. Dayton Agrees to Pay Settlement to Man at Center of Controversial 2021 Traffic Stop
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WHIO. Dayton NAACP Reacts to City’s Settlement With Man at Center of Controversial 2021 Traffic Stop
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Dayton 24/7 Now. Owensby Legal Team Reacts to Department of Justice Dayton Police Settlement
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U.S. Department of Justice. Justice Department Secures Settlement With Dayton Ohio Police Department
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Dayton 24/7 Now. Dayton Police Settle With Justice Department Over ADA Violations in 2021 Traffic Stop
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U.S. Department of Justice. Settlement Agreement Dayton Police ADA
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WHIO. Police Release Findings Internal Investigation Into Traffic Stop Involving Man With Disability
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CNN. Dayton Ohio Police Probe Black Paraplegic Man
15
Ohio Supreme Court. State v. Simon, 2025-Ohio-5660