Parents of injured toddler file suit

19-month-old hurt by flash grenade during a drug raid.

The parents of a toddler injured by a flash grenade during a drug raid in North Georgia in May have filed a federal lawsuit seeking damages.

Alecia and Bounkham Phonesavanh filed the lawsuit last week in federal court in Gainesville. It seeks damages from Habersham County Sheriff Joey Terrell and members of a task force that carried out the May 28 raid.

Terrell didn’t respond to a phone message seeking comment Tuesday.

During the raid on the northeast Georgia home in May, a flash grenade detonated in 19-monthold Bounkham “Bou Bou” Phonesavanh’s playpen.

“The grenade exploded next to the child’s face and chest causing severe, life threatening and permanently debilitating and disfiguring injuries to him,” the lawsuit says.

The Phonesavanh family was staying with fami- ly temporarily at the time of the raid because their home in Wisconsin had recently burned down.

A Habersham County grand jury in October found that the investigation that led to the raid was “hurried” and “sloppy” but recommended no criminal charges be brought against the officers involved.

Federal authorities continue to investigate and will decide whether federal charges are appropriate, according to the U.S. attorney’s office in Atlanta.

The no-knock warrant used in the raid was obtained using false and intentionally misleading information and was used in an unreasonable and incompetent way, the lawsuit says. Law enforcement officers should be aware that flash grenades can cause serious injury or death, the lawsuit says.

The lawsuit asks for a jury trial and seeks damages, including for physical injuries, emotional pain and suffering, medical bills and alleged violations of their constitutional and civil rights. It also seeks attorney fees and punitive damages.

AJC Bounkham Phonesavanh, seen here July 2, suffered injuries to his face when a flash grenade exploded in his playpen during a botched drug raid in Habersham County.