Homeless Fresno man acquitted of resisting arrest after altercation with police

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- The altercation was caught on body camera.

A 60-year-old homeless man in Fresno was facing charges for resisting arrest after attorneys claim police officers told him to remove his belongings from a homeless camp early last year.

This week, a jury found that man, Lewis Brown, not guilty of the charge after a four-day trial.

"They used every maneuver on him even though he wasn't being aggressive," says attorney Kevin Little.

Little says the officers told his client and others at the homeless camp near Highway 180 and 99 that they had 10 minutes to remove their belongings, and Brown asked them if they had that right.

Shortly after, more officers return and Little says that's when they pinned down his client.

"One of them had a knee on Mr. Brown's head," Little said. "That same officer took out his firearm. You can see the firearm is pointed down at Mr. Brown."

Little says current law doesn't allow jurisdictions with more transients than shelters, like Fresno, to move the homeless from place to place.

He says more funding needs to be put in to provide services and housing.

Mayor Jerry Dyer can't comment on the case, but says they're creating more shelter by converting more motels into housing.

"We're in the process of opening more motels," Dyer said. "One in the latter of July, and another in August. With that, we'll have more room capacity."

Dyer says they're also creating a homeless assistance response team that will bring services and help directly to those who need it.

Action News reached out to the Fresno Police Department for comment, which released a statement saying, "A government tort claim has been filed with the city on this matter and because of that, it would be inappropriate for us to comment further at this time."