18-year-old files lawsuit against San Bernardino police for "unprovoked police violence"
Attorneys for an 18-year-old announced they have filed a lawsuit against the city of San Bernardino and its police department for alleged "unprovoked police violence" against the teen during an incident outside a grocery store last year.
Erin Cowser was 17 years old, days away from graduating high school, she says, when she was arrested on May 21, 2025, outside a Food 4 Less store.
She was arrested on suspicion of trespassing and attempting to fight others. Attorneys said all the misdemeanor charges were later dropped, and that the "compliant teenager posed no threat and committed no crime."
Attorney Toni Jaramilla explained the 2025 incident, saying that when Cowser went to the grocery store after school, she was bullied and assaulted by other juveniles at the store. "Those juveniles were ejected from the store, and Erin stepped out of the store and walked over to some of her friends who were standing outside," Jaramilla said.
She said police arrived and, without warning or probable cause, an officer grabbed Cowser by her backpack, "dragged her to his vehicle and started to cuff her…she was very compliant."
Jaramilla said the officer then did a "takedown maneuver, a hip-toss, that flipped Erin in the air." She said that, while cuffed, Cowser landed face-first on the concrete and was knocked unconscious.
"This is all captured on body-worn video," Jarmilla said, continuing to say that the officer picked Cowser up to put her in the police vehicle, and dropped her face on the metal part of the vehicle. Jaramilla noted that there is a cellphone video capturing part of the incident as well.
"I felt my backpack get tugged, I was like 90 pounds, I flew…and I was pushed against the car," Cowser said during the news conference.
She said she struggled with her backpack, and said the officer told her to "stop resisting" as he was cuffing her. "And that's the last thing I remember. I woke up, and I was in the back of the cop car on the freeway, and I look down and I see a bunch of blood on my body, and my chin was still leaking, and he had my phone in his hand."
She said the officer told her she had fallen.
In an earlier issued news release, the San Bernardino Police Department refuted those claims.
"There have been statements made on social media alleging that the female was slammed to the ground while handcuffed and that an officer claimed she "fell," suggesting an attempt to deny the use of force. We would like to clarify that these claims are inaccurate," SBPD said in a statement.
"The officer was attempting to place the female in handcuffs. The officer was only able to place one of her hands in cuffs when she began actively pulling away and attempting to walk off from the officer when a takedown maneuver was used."
Attorneys say Cowser lost consciousness and suffered a traumatic brain injury with memory loss, a deep facial laceration, as well as wrist and back injuries. The lawsuit further alleges that after the incident, officers falsely claimed Cowser's injuries were caused by other juveniles.
Following the initial incident, the police department reported that photographs were taken and Cowser was transported to a local hospital for a full medical evaluation. Police added that she sustained a laceration to her chin, a scrape to her cheek, and complained of pain.
"This was not a mistake — it was violence, followed by dishonesty," Jaramilla said. "San Bernardino police need to come out, and, with the truth of what happened, and they need to be held accountable for the injuries Ms. Cowser sustained."
