A lawsuit against an Adams County sheriff's deputy and several of the staff members at the Adams County jail alleges the deputy intentionally broke a suspect's middle finger after that suspect flipped him off.
The lawsuit, which was filed on Tuesday, asks for repayment for medical costs as well as the pain and suffering he endured from both the broken finger itself and allegedly not receiving medical care for eight weeks while in the Adams County jail.
According to the lawsuit, it all started when Jeffrey Woodfork and an unidentified woman were approached by the Adams County officer on December 12, 2015.
They had allegedly parked on a residential street and were crossing the road when the officer, in an unmarked car, pulled up behind them, got out of his car and pointed a gun at Woodfork telling him to freeze.
The lawsuit says Woodfork stopped but the woman with him ran, causing the officer to yell at Woodfork, asking who she was and why she was running.
It was at this point, Woodfork flipped the officer off and shouted a profanity at him, according to the lawsuit.
The officer then took Woodfork under arrest. According the lawsuit, while handcuffing Woodfork the officer intentionally broke the finger Woodfork had used to flip him off.
The lawsuit says Woodfork was booked into the Adams County Jail where he told several staff members about the broken finger but he allegedly did not receive medical treatment until January, 2016.
It also alleges he did not see a doctor until February 2016 and by that point the finger had already healed in the position it had been broken.
The lawsuit is asking for money to pay for the medical costs Woodfork has already incurred, possible future surgeries on his finger and for the pain he suffered while in the Adams County Jail.
The lawsuit does not specify the charges Woodfork was held under while at the jail.
