One-armed man sues over being handcuffed wrist-to-ankle

CLAY, W.Va. – A one-armed man whose wrist was handcuffed to his ankle has filed a federal lawsuit against the sheriff’s department in Clay County, West Virginia.

Former state Sen. Randy Schoonover says deputies used excessive force, subjected him to cruel and unusual punishment, and never told him why he was approached or what he was charged with.

Schoonover became addicted to painkillers after losing his arm in an ATV accident.

The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports that Schoonover’s lawyer filed a second lawsuit Thursday in an unrelated case against one of the same deputies. In that suit, Rita Kaye Taylor says Jonathan Holcomb and another deputy searched her home even though she never gave them consent and repeatedly asked for search warrants.

Both lawsuits seek punitive damages. The Gazette-Mail didn’t include defendant comment.

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Information from: The Charleston Gazette-Mail, http://wvgazettemail.com.