Christopher Johnson is suing Harris County in Houston, Texas, because he says he was choked for smiling for his mugshot.
Reportedly, Johnson was arrested July 29, 2015, because officers believed he was driving while intoxicated. Johnson’s lawsuit states that while he was posing for a set of mugshot photos, he was choked for approximately 30 seconds by two unidentified employees of Harris County for smiling. Johnson says that he felt “emasculated and humiliated.”
The Harris County Sheriff’s Office released a statement in response to Johnson’s accusations:
“It is not uncommon for detention personnel to assist impaired or uncooperative detainees while taking booking photographs,” the note says. The statement also goes on to say that Johnson’s lawsuit “does not hold merit.”