Another protester is suing Denver and its police chief over actions taken during the 2020 racial justice demonstrations, this time because officers threw a flash-bang grenade at him.

Robert Dayton joined protesters on May 31 — the fourth day of George Floyd demonstrations in Denver — and police shot him with pepper balls, according to the federal lawsuit he filed Thursday.

As protests continued, Dayton sat down in the crowd near Colfax Avenue and Emerson Street, where the protesters faced a line of police officers. Video from a news helicopter shows an officer throw a flash-bang grenade at the group, and it struck Dayton in the elbow and seared his eyes, the lawsuit states.

Officers did not give a warning prior to throwing the flash-bang, the lawsuit alleges.

“When Mr. Dayton was hit with the flash-bang grenade, he was not engaging in any property destruction, committing any crime, threatening any law enforcement officer (or anyone else), or attempting to flee arrest,” the lawsuit states. “When Mr. Dayton was hit with the flash-bang grenade, he was peacefully protesting.”

The lawsuit names the city of Denver, Denver police Chief Paul Pazen, former Cmdr. Patrick Phelan and four unidentified officers as defendants. The lawsuit states that Denver police policy did not provide enough parameters for use of flash-bang grenades and did not properly train its officers to use them, causing Dayton’s injury.

“It is absolutely outrageous that Denver would let its officers use flash-bang grenades, on which they have no training and policies, against peaceful protesters,” Dayton’s attorney, Andy McNulty, said in a news release. “It is a miracle that Mr. Dayton wasn’t killed by the bomb that was thrown directly at him.”

“This lawsuit seeks to impose a modicum of accountability on those officers who continuously brutalized protesters,” the lawsuit states.

The lawsuit not only asks for monetary damages but also asks the court to ban Denver police from using chemical agents, projectiles and flash-bangs against protesters, among other policy changes.

The lawsuit is one of several filed against the city connected to police conduct during the 2020 protests. A federal jury on March 25 found Denver violated 12 protesters’ civil rights and awarded $14 million to the plaintiffs. The city has also paid $1.3 million in settlements to injured protesters.

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