INDIANAPOLIS — An IMPD officer, who fatally shot a man after a pursuit last year and was later cleared of any wrongdoing, dropped his lawsuit Thursday against the NFL for defamation.
Ofc. De'Joure Mercer had claimed in the lawsuit that NFL Entertainment's "Say Their Stories" video caused him to suffer "tortious injury" in Indianapolis.
The video, which was part of the NFL's "Inspire Change" campaign, included Dreasjon Reed, who led police on a high-speed chase on the northwest side of Indianapolis on May 6, 2020, before he was shot and killed by Mercer after a foot pursuit.
"The Video gives rise to the inference, implication, and imputation that Mercer committed occupational misconduct and even criminal acts during the May 6 Encounter with Reed, similar to that which were inflicted upon George Floyd. This inference, implication, and imputation is false because Mercer committed no such acts. Similarly, the Video accuses Mercer of committing acts amounting to 'social injustice,' which is unequivocally and demonstrably false," the lawsuit read.
It also claimed Mercer received threats that referenced the NFL's campaign and the damages to him would be in the millions of dollars over the course of his life.
A grand jury determined last November there was insufficient evidence to hand down an indictment against Mercer for homicide or other crimes in Reed's death. Indiana State Police conducted the investigation into the shooting, which found that Mercer's shooting of Reed was within IMPD's use of force policies and did not violate state law.
According to the ISP investigation, Mercer first deployed his stun gun, knocking Reed to the ground after a foot pursuit that started at the intersection of West 62nd Street and North Michigan Road. A reconstruction of the scene showed that Reed fired two shots, though it was unable to determine who fired first. Mercer's lawsuit said Reed fired twice as he fell to the ground and the officer returned fire, killing the suspect. The reconstruction showed that Reed was facing Mercer when he was shot.
The investigation also determined the gun Reed fired had been involved in two drive-by shootings in Indianapolis. The gun had been stolen from a pawn shop in Texas.