A Eugene man filed a $1 million civil lawsuit against the Eugene Police Department accusing officers of using excessive force during an incident Jan. 11, 2025.
This is the third excessive force complaint lodged against Eugene police since May.
The 14-page complaint, filed in Lane County Circuit Court July 30, alleged officers unnecessarily punched, choked and used a taser on plaintiff Jehoshaphat Commandest, 41, who was identified in court documents as a mixed-race man with a dark complexion, while he was handcuffed.
Eugene Police Auditor Craig Renetzky, whose office intakes and audits police investigations and classifies complaints, later sustained allegations that Eugene police officers used force "in excess of that which was reasonably necessary under the circumstances."
Defendants in the lawsuit include City of Eugene, Eugene Police Department, and Officers Stephen Lahm and Lindsey Collier.
According to a state database, Lahm resigned from the EPD on Nov. 21, 2025, and currently has a professional standards case under review by the Oregon Department of Public Safety and Standards Training. He had been with the department since 2019. Collier, who was hired at the department in 2023, remains an active police officer.
Commandest claims a house and detached garage near the intersection of River Road and Ferndale Drive were scheduled for demolition by the property owner.
The property owner invited Daneiel Bickel, the next-door neighbor whom Commandest lived with, to the property to remove scrap boards and metal. Bickel told Commandest he could enter the property and remove the scrap, which he did just before noon.
While he was removing the scrap, a neighbor to the property notified the property owner of Commandest's presence. The owner then called 911, according to the lawsuit. Commandest says neither he, nor his attorney Derek Larwick, were granted access to requested copies of the 911 calls from EPD.
Lahm and Collier arrived at the scene at approximately 12:13 p.m. to find Commandest standing near a white pickup truck on the neighboring property.
Commandest told the officers he was collecting wood from the property, which he believed to be abandoned. He allegedly said he could put the wood back if the property owner wanted it returned.
Lahm said he spoke with the property owner who advised officers Commandest did not have permission to be on the property at that time. Lahm then approached Commandest and told him he was being detained.
Commandest did not resist when officers took his arms and handcuffed him, the complaint said. While he was escorted to a patrol vehicle, Defendant Lahm allegedly made comments that Commandest considered threatening, such as, "I'll dust your ass."
Due to fear of Lahm's comments and worried he would be injured or killed by the officers, Commandest claims he turned his body toward his home to say goodbye to his family. That's when Lahm allegedly punched Commandest in the face seven times, briefly choked him with both hands and tased him in "drive stun" mode twice, totaling 17 seconds of electric shock.
As a result of the beating, Commandest said he experienced significant facial bruising, cuts, abrasions, electrocution marks and injuries, a traumatic brain injury, a bloody nose and ruptured blood vessels in his eye.
The lawsuit claims excessive force, negligence and battery on behalf of the officers.
Following the incident, Commandest was charged with second-degree criminal trespass and resisting arrest. Eugene Municipal Court records indicate Commandest pleaded guilty to the trespass charge. The resisting arrest charge was dismissed.
Larwick, Commandest's attorney, provided dashcam footage of the incident to The Register-Guard.
The footage depicts Lahm and Collier holding Commandest by the arms as they walk to a patrol vehicle. Commandest can then be seen attempting to turn around when Lahm punches Commandest in the face seven times, puts both hands on his throat for approximately three seconds, and then tases him twice while Commandest is face down on the hood of the patrol vehicle. Commandest screams while the officers tell him to "stop." Before holstering his taser, Lahm says, "Are you going to listen?" The officers then leave view of the camera with Commandest between them.
In a statement, Larwick said law enforcement officers are entrusted with a sacred duty.
"We citizens give them the power to use force, but the officers must not abuse that power. Mr. Commandest, who was arrested only for suspicion of trespassing, was handcuffed and restrained," Larwick said in a statement. "When Officer Lahm punched Mr. Commandest in the face, attempted to choke him, and used the Taser multiple times, all while Mr. Commandest was handcuffed, that was an abuse of power."
Commandest filed a formal complaint against the Eugene Police Department on Jan. 15, 2025.
On Dec. 9, the Eugene Civilian Review Board reviewed a use of force incident involving two police officers in December. Both officers were anonymous in the review, described only as "Officer A" and "Officer B." Officer A was described as having delivered "multiple focused blows to the arrestee," followed by "strikes with two dry stun taser deployments."
In an internal affairs interview, Officer A was questioned about the interactions with the arrestee. He stated he had a safety concern with the arrestee and justified his use of force because the arrestee's failure to follow instructions, threatening behavior and resistance.
Officer A received two use-of-force allegations, one conduct allegation and one body-worn video allegation for muting his camera.
Everybody was concerned, including internal affairs personnel and the auditor's office — both of which flagged the incident before the arrestee filed his complaint.
Eugene Police Deputy Chief Shawn Adams described Officer A's use of strikes and a taser as a "completely inappropriate tactic" and said there was poor communication between the two officers.
"This case, for me, was pretty appalling," Elise Josephson, chair of the CRB, said. She described a feeling of shock that one officer felt the need to use force while the other did not, calling the action "unacceptable."
Haleigh Kochanski is a breaking news and public safety reporter for The Register-Guard. You may reach her at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Man sues Eugene police, claims officer excessively tased, punched him