Twin Cities rapper Nur-D hired Rodney King’s attorney John Burris after federal agents pepper-sprayed him during Minneapolis protests.
Twin Cities rapper Nur-D just hired the same lawyer who got Rodney King $3.8 million.
Nur-D brought on attorney John Burris and his Los Angeles firm, Burris, Nisenbaum, Curry & Lacy. Burris won King’s massive civil jury verdict after four LA cops beat him on camera in 1991.
The move comes after federal agents pepper-sprayed and violently detained Nur-D during Minneapolis protests on January 24. Video shows multiple masked agents tackling him from behind while he walked away with his hands up.
Nur-D and his wife, Sarah, plan to sue the Department of Homeland Security, ICE, Customs and Border Protection, Border Patrol and other federal agencies. The law firm says they’ll “pursue legal action for the violation of their civil liberties.”
The incident happened during chaos after federal agents shot and killed Alex Pretti. Nur-D was walking away from the scene when agents hit him with projectiles from behind, according to the law firm’s statement.
“[Nur-D] was pressed into the street, kneeled on by multiple agents at a time, verbally assaulted with excessive vulgarity, and sprayed in the face with an unknown chemical weapon,” the statement reads. “All while hearing the desperate cries of his wife, Sarah, as she pleaded for his life with agents at the scene.”
Video captured Nur-D screaming, “You’re gonna have to kill me!” as agents loaded him into a pickup truck. He was treated at Hennepin County Medical Center and released that same night.
Nur-D posted on Instagram on January 29, saying he’s safe at home. “There really isn’t a template for a ‘I survived being assaulted by the federal government,’” he wrote.
The rapper urged supporters to focus on “the families of those who can’t say that.” DHS representatives haven’t responded to requests for comment about Nur-D’s case.
Related
