Cop who slammed on brakes in police van incident wants driver added to suit

— Suspended New Haven cop Oscar Diaz who slammed on the brakes of the police transport van when Randy Cox was injured wants an unknown driver added as a defendant in the $100 million lawsuit filed against him, four other officers and the city, court documents show.

In a motion filed in the civil case, attorney James Tallberg said Diaz would not have needed to slam on the brakes if an unknown female driver hadn’t gone a few feet past a stop sign as his client was approaching the intersection of Division and Mansfield streets while transporting Cox on June 19.

“As a result of the negligence of the operator of the unidentified vehicle, officer Diaz was forced to abruptly apply the transport van’s brakes and sound the transport van’s horn, to avoid colliding with the unidentified vehicle,” Tallberg wrote in the court filing.

Tallberg did not return a phone call Monday seeking additional comment.

More than eight months since the incident, Cox can only move his left arm in a limited manner and turn his head, but he is otherwise paralyzed from the chest down and needs constant medical care, one of his attorneys said Monday.

“It’s irresponsible that they are trying to point the finger at someone else,” said Louis Rubano, one of several lawyers working with civil rights attorney Ben Crump to represent Cox in the lawsuit. “He was placed in handcuffs, but the van had no seatbelts. The officer was driving in excess of the speed limit and slammed on the brakes. Instead of responding to his pleas for help, the officer ignored them. Now the officer is trying to blame the driver and EMS.”