A Black man who was arrested on live TV is suing the city of Frederick, Maryland, its police officers and the company that produces the reality cop show series “On Patrol: Live,” claiming he was falsely arrested for robbery and portrayed in a false light on the show, damaging his reputation.
Kairi Myrick was standing outside his apartment building in a low-income neighborhood of Frederick on July 13, 2024 when three police officers, trailed by a production crew, abruptly accosted and arrested him without probable cause, his lawsuit filed in March in federal court in Maryland and obtained by Atlanta Black Star claims.
The police were looking for a man suspected of robbing a man on a nearby train platform, the complaint says. The victim, who was “visibly intoxicated,” had earlier told police on camera that a man with a gun took his wallet, removed $60 in cash and ran off. He told them to look out for two Black male suspects, one wearing a white tank top and one wearing a gray tank top, both wearing shorts and with crew cuts.
Myrick was wearing a white T-shirt and jeans and had dreadlocks, the lawsuit says.
Additionally, a man who was outside at the time told police that Myrick had only just exited his home.
In the episode, police are shown searching Myrick’s bag and pulling out another bag of what is described as marijuana. Myrick admitted to police that he had the drug while he was detained, reported the Frederick News Post.
He was charged with felony robbery, theft and possession with intent to distribute marijuana, said his attorney, Ike Emejuru. The charges were later dropped and he was released.
His entire arrest was livestreamed and seen by thousands of residents in the greater Washington, D.C., Virginia and Maryland areas, was featured in season 3, episode 2 of “On Patrol: Live,” and remains live and “public for the world to see” on the TV network REELZ via the streaming service Peacock, the lawsuit says.
Myrick is suing Officers Irvin Solano, Nicholas Hurley and Kevin Long for false arrest and false imprisonment, alleging they knew he didn’t match the description and was not the robbery suspect identified by the victim and still knowingly arrested him without probable cause, in violation of the Fourth Amendment and Maryland law.
His arrest on live TV “falsely exposed Myrick to ridicule, embarrassment, scorn and criminalization from members of his own community and to the entire world,” the lawsuit claims. He was “mocked by viewers” and referred to as a criminal on Facebook, the complaint says, citing samples of such posts, including one that said, “They found the person that robbed the drunk guy.”
His lawsuit also alleges that the city of Frederick, which is liable for the conduct of its employees, and the production company acted in concert and recklessly “exposed to publicity in a false light that Myrick was a criminal,” causing him to suffer from emotional distress, embarrassment and ridicule to the point that he “sought treatment.”
He seeks a jury trial to determine nominal, compensatory and punitive damages, including back pay and front pay, future benefits, and legal costs.
On June 16, defendant Half Moon Pictures, LLC, which produces “On Patrol: Live” filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing that Myrick’s claims are “meritless.”
The production company argues that Maryland law “protects fair and accurate media reporting on government operations and actions,” and that what its crew members filmed during its ride-a-long with police was “a truthful depiction of Myrick’s arrest.”
While Myrick disputes that he was not guilty of the crimes he was arrested for, Half Moon, “a neutral third party documenting law enforcement activity … never stated he was guilty and instead explained during the telecast that Myrick maintained his innocence.”
Half Moon further asserts that the First Amendment shields the company from civil liability “when truthful constitutional speech is at issue. … Myrick cannot recover damages from the television production company that merely recorded his public arrest and aired that unedited footage to a television audience.”
The fact that Myrick “disagrees with the conclusions that third parties on social media drew after watching the show does not mean that Half Moon’s telecast was false,” the motion further argues.
The city of Frederick has not yet filed a response to the lawsuit.
The Frederick Police Department’s public information officer, Samantha Long, said in an emailed statement to Atlanta Black Star that the department does not comment on pending or potential litigation as a matter of policy.
“We remain committed to transparency and accountability and will continue to share information with the public when it is appropriate and legally permissible to do so,” she said.
A city spokesperson issued a statement last year that the department was originally scheduled to be part of the live cops-on-patrol show for eight weeks, but ended its involvement two weeks early “after internal discussions.”
“We had a positive experience working with the production team and appreciated the opportunity to give the community a window into our officers’ day-to-day work,” the statement said, adding, “it was time to move on.”
