No Justice, No Peace: 40 Times Benjamin Crump Fought for Civil Rights
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Updated as of 10/14/2023 at 4:30 p.m. ET
The face of Benjamin Crump appears next to almost every family you see fighting for justice these days. That’s just because he’s one of the most prominent civil rights attorney applying pressure on this criminal “justice” of ours. You may see his face more often but trust, he’s been fighting for justice way before we took to the streets yelling George Floyd’s name.
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Marsha Evins
The 69-year-old woman was arrested and charged with voter fraud last month, per WCTV. She was flagged for allegedly falsely claiming she was eligible to vote in Florida during 2020 and 2022 while being on probation. Crump is one of many civil rights leaders demanding her charges be dropped and that Florida quit their tactics to intimidate Black voters.
Gershun Freeman
Crump was retained to represent the family of Freeman, a 33-year-old who died in at Shelby County jail while having a mental crisis, per FOX 13 Memphis. Nine officers were charged in his death after restraining him on the ground and exacerbating his heart condition. Crump demanded criminal accountability for the officers.
Tennessee State University
Crump joined the defense of the students and staff at Tennessee State University, demanding lawmakers allocate funds toward the school that he alleges were owed. In a letter from the Biden administration, the state was called out for underfunding its HBCUs by billions, per The Tennessean. The number Crump is fighting for $2.1 billion but that’s a small portion of the decades of money they’d lost.
Ronald Greene
Crump stood with the family of Ronald Greene and Tyre Nichols, Black motorists who died after being brutally beaten by police, and demanded federal civil rights charges be handed to the officers involved in Greene’s case, Crump’s firm stated. The officers are currently facing state charges of negligent homicide and malfeasance.
Anja Dangelmaier
Crump is representing the 18-year-old (top left) from Texas and her family. Dangelmaier and her friends were caught in the aftermath of a car accident involving a tanker truck that spilled anhydrous ammonia, per WCIA. She and her three friends were caught on the toxic cloud and were sent to the ICU for chemical burns. She remains in critical condition.
Henrietta Lacks’ Estate
Crump filed a lawsuit against Thermo Fisher on behalf of the estate of Henrietta Lacks, the woman whose cells were taken by doctors to develop vaccines and treatments. The suit accused the company of seizing her DNA without consent and therefore, barring her family from the profits of what her cells created. On what would have been Lacks’ 103rd birthday, the two parties agreed to a confidential settlement.
LaShawn Thompson
Thompson’s family retained Crump to represent them after the man was found dead in Fulton County Jail from severe neglect and “body insect infestation.” The attorney called out the jail for the conditions and also released the findings from an independent autopsy that found his manner of death to be a homicide, per ABC. Thompson’s family won a $ million settlement.
Jadarrius Rose
Crump joined the legal team representing Jadarrius Rose, the Black man who was mauled by a Circleville police K-9 while surrendering to the authorities. The officer involved was fired and Rose’s family is considering taking legal action against the police department, per CNN.
Athletes v Northwestern
Crump filed several lawsuits on behalf of current and former student athletes who claimed to be sexually assaulted, emotionally abused and hazed while participating in various sports at Northwestern University including volleyball and football. The school was accused of negligence, willful and wanton disregard for player safety and violating of Illinois’ Gender Violence Act.
Harris County Jail Deaths
Crump filed a suit on behalf of the families of 28 inmates who died while in custody at Harris County Jail in Houston, Tx. The suit alleges the inmates were deprived of their constitutional rights due to poor jail conditions, unchecked violence and a “longstanding culture of deliberate indifference to the lives of the detainees.”
Tyre Nichols
Tyre Nichols was pulled over Jan 7, 2023 for allegedly driving under the influence. Members of the Memphis SCORPION unit dragged him out of his vehicle and beat him. When Nichols fled by foot, he was stopped by another group of Scorpion officer in unmarked cars who beat him bloodied. Nichols died after succumbing to his injuries days later.
Crump represented Nichols’ family in a $550 million civil lawsuit against the five Memphis police officers criminally charged in the beating, the police director, the city of Memphis and another officer involved who was termination, per AP.
Earl Moore Jr.
Earl Moore Jr. was suffering from hallucinations from alcohol withdrawal when the police were called for help in December 2022. Two EMS workers arrived to his home and body camera footage recorded the two yelling at Moore and handling him aggressively. One of them was recorded saying, “I am seriously not in the mood for this dumb s***.” Moore was strapped facedown on the gurney and died at the hospital from positional asphyxia.
Crump was retained by Moore’s family for their legal defense, per WCIA.
Malcolm X
Crump represented the family of Malcolm X in a suit against the New York City Police Department and several government agencies for allegedly concealing evidence related to the civil rights leader’s murder. The $100 million wrongful death suit claims the defendants intentionally hid exculpatory evidence that would have saved the men accused in the killing from a wrongful conviction, per CBS.
Ralph Yarl
The 16-year-old was going to pick up his younger twin brothers when he arrived at the wrong house by accident. After ringing the doorbell and waiting on the porch, Andrew Lester appeared behind his glass door and shot the boy twice with his firearm. Yarl recovered from his injuries and his family immediately retained Crump to represent them.
Ed Townsend
Crump represented the family of songwriter Ed Townsend in a copyright infringement suit that alleged British singer Ed Sheeran bit off of “Let’s Get It On,” the Marvin Gaye hit, co-written by Townsend. The jury sided with Sheeran in their decision that his single “Thinking Out Loud” was written independently, per NBC.
Ajike “AJ” Owens
The Black mother of four was shot and killed by her neighbor, Susan Lorincz, who was accused of racially harassing Owens’ children. Owens’ family retained Crump to represent them and demand the arrest of Lorincz which didn’t occur until almost a week after the shooting.
Irvo Otieno
Otieno’s mother called the police to report a mental crisis. The officers claim Otieno became aggressive with them and he was taken into custody. Days later, he was transported to a psychiatric hospital where he was restrained on the ground for 12 minutes by the weight of the seven deputies. The chief medical examiner ruled his death as a homicide.
Crump was retained by Otieno’s family and filed a request to the Department of Justice for a criminal investigation into Otieno’s death, per Richmond Times-Dispatch.
Rasheem Carter
Carter texted his mother in October 2022 to tell her he was going to the police station because he believed he was being chased by a group of white men. He went missing shortly after that day and the authorities found his decayed remains a month later. Crump was retained by the family after they examined the remains and found Carter may have been decapitated - in contrast to the authorities original claim that no foul play was involved, per ABC16.
Jamal Sutherland
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Sutherland died at the Al Cannon Detention Center in January of 2021 when he as forcibly removed from his cell to be taken to a bond hearing on an assault charge, reports say.
After the South Carolina Attorney General decided not to investigate Sutherland’s death nor pursue criminal charges against the corrections officers, Sutherland’s family hired Benjamin Crump’s firm to help them fight for justice, per WIS 10 News.
James Lowrey
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Lowrey, 40, was shot and killed by Titusville police officers who were responding to a domestic dispute. Ben Crump threatened to sue the city because they wouldn’t release public records related to the incident including the 911 call or police report, per Florida Today.
Crump claimed the shooting may have been a result of a mistaken identity and that Lowrey wasn’t the person they were looking for.
Jason Walker
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Walker was shot and killed by an off-duty deputy in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Reports say he was in an agitated state, waving his hands and yelling. Then, he jumped on the hood of the deputy’s truck, ripped off one of the windshield wipers and began smashing the glass of the car with it.
Walker was shot four times by the deputy. Crump stood against the lack of charges against the officer, arguing the state’s laws equate unnecessary deadly force to self-defense, per CBS 17.
Caleb Walker
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Walker, diagnosed with autism and behavioral issues, was sent to Oconee Group Home for help in 2020, per Click Orlando. Per the investigation, Walker had a record of acting aggressively toward staff members. One morning, two staff members restrained Walker, holding him down for up to 20 minutes. His autopsy says his cause of death was excited delirium with restraint and was ruled a homicide.
Crump represented Walker’s family in filing a wrongful death lawsuit against the care facility and Attain, Inc.
Amir Locke
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Locke was sleeping on a couch in a Minneapolis apartment when a raid of SWAT officers issued a no-knock warrant, reports say. Locke pulled the blanket from over himself and after one officer noticed his (legal) firearm resting on the sofa, Locke was shot and killed within seconds.
Per Business Insider, Crump filed a wrongful death suit against the Minneapolis Police Department arguing the officers used excessive force.
Walter Hutchins
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Hutchins was shot and killed by a group of men who identified as “bounty hunters” who were allegedly attempting to execute a warrant, reports say. They targeted Hutchins while he was sitting in his car. They claim he shot at them first, though the fire they returned took his life.
Per Click2Houston, Crump called on the Houston Police Department to conduct a full investigation and demanded the plain clothes officers be held accountable.
Z-Kye Husain
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Husain, 14, was recorded being violently arrested at Bridgewater Mall after allegedly fighting a white teen, reports say. The video caused outrage all over social media as people called out the officers for racial bias because they did not detain the white teenager.
Per ABC 6 News, Crump and the National Action Network called for an investigation and police accountability.
April Curley
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Curley, a former diversity recruiter at Google, sued the company for racial and systemic discrimination along with a number of former employees, reports say. They allege Black employees were told they didn’t fit the company’s culture and thrown into “dead-end” jobs. Crump represented her in the class action lawsuit, per WUSA 9 News.
Patrick Lyoya
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When Lyoya was pulled over by a Grand Rapids police officer, the traffic stop turned into a heated wrestling match, reports say. The officer, Christopher Schurr, claims he tried to user his Taser but Lyoya grabbed it. He then resorted to deadly force, shooting him in the back of the head.
Ben Crump represented the family in demanding the release of the video footage from the incident to the public and criminal charges against Schurr, per Fox 2 Detroit.
Ebony Crockett
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Crockett was fatally shot at an Amazon warehouse in Horn Lake, Mississippi in June, per Fox 13 Memphis. Crockett had a restraining order against the man who shot her, the report says. Crump’s office represented the family. Crump questioned how the shooter was able to enter the building and accused the facility of not having controlled access or security.
Amazon Warehouse Collapse
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At another Amazon warehouse in Edwardsville, Illinois, the building had collapsed during a tornado, per a report from 25 News Now. Crump along with attorneys Bob Hilliard, Patrick King and William Miller sued on behalf of the Amazon workers who survived the incident and one who victim who died.
They allege Amazon did not allow workers to leave the building until after the storm passed and threatened to fire them if they did leave.
Buffalo Shooting Victims
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The family of Ruth Whitfield, an 82-year-old woman killed at Tops supermarket by white supremacist Payton Gendron, hired Ben Crump to represent them in a potential lawsuit, per The Guardian. Crump called on the police to investigate race replacement theory played into Gendron’s plot for the racially motivated attack,
Gwendolyn Osborne
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Osborne was found dead in a senior living Roger Park’s James Sneider Apartments after a heat wave left her and other residents in sweltering temperature conditions, per ABC 7 Chicago. The report says the building operators are required to keep the heat on until June 1. Osborne’s son, Ken Rye, retained Crump to represent his mother in a lawsuit.
Jalen Randle
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Randle, 29, was wanted on three warrants when cops pursued him, per KHOU 11. After a car chase, the vehicle finally stopped and Randle exited the vehicle upon command. However, he was shot within seconds.
Ben Crump represented the family in confirming what his cause of death was. The official autopsy claimed he was shot in front of the neck but the independent autopsy showed he’d been shot in the back of the neck. Crump’s office also argued Randle wasn’t given enough time to comply with the officer’s commands before being shot.
Paul Rusesabagina
Paul Rusesabagina, whose story inspired the film “Hotel Rwanda”, wears a pink prison uniform as he arrives for a bail hearing at a court in the capital Kigali, Rwanda on Sept. 25, 2020. Rights activists and others are urging Rwandan authorities to free Rusesabagina, saying his health is failing after an appeals court upheld his 25-year jail term for terror offenses. Some activists who spoke during an online event Wednesday, April 13, 2022 said the U.S. could do more to free the 67-year-old recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
The Rwandan politician, also known as the hero of the film Hotel Rwanda, had saved over 1,200 people from Rwandan genocide. However, upon protesting the repressive rule of president Paul Kagame, he was convicted of treason and accused of belonging to a terrorist organization, per The New York Times.
Ben Crump took to his defense after he received a 20+ year sentence, per San Antonio Express-News.
MacLaren Children’s Center
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Crump filed a lawsuit on behalf of 31 minors, who allegedly suffered sexual abuse in MacLaren Hall, per the firm’s website. The statement says the facility was overcrowded and understaffed and claims staff members overmedicated, taunted and restrained the children. The staff was also accused of being poorly trained and were not given thorough background checks.
Richard Cox
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Cox was left paralyzed from neck down after being injured in the back of a police vehicle, per Connecticut Public. The officers ignored his injuries, under the impression he was intoxicated.
Crump represented Cox in filing a $100 million federal civil lawsuit against the five officers involved. Crump also argued racial bias had to do with how Cox was treated.
Andrew Tekle Sundberg
Sundberg was shot by a Minneapolis sniper after an hours-long standoff with the police. Per CBS’ report, Sundberg fired rounds into a neighbor’s apartment when the resident called 911 to report bullets coming through her wall. When officers responded, they tried to get him to surrender. It’s unclear what forced the sniper to shoot.
Crump along with attorney Jeff Storm represented Sundberg’s family and argued the department moved too slow to release information to the family about the incident.
Autrey Davis
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A car crash involving a Harris County deputy left Autrey Davis dead and her 3-year-old son in critical condition. According to ABC 13 News, the deputy was pursuing a criminal suspect but it was not specified they were looking for Davis.
Crump took on the case representing the family and working with attorney Andy Rubenstein.
Valentina Orellana-Peralta
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Orellana-Peralta, 14, was shot and killed while in a dressing room trying on her quinceañera dress, reported CNN. The officers were after a violent suspect. One officer fired toward the suspect but one bullet struck the teen in the chest.
Crump represented the family in filing a lawsuit against the LAPD officer who shot her, per the LA Times.
Michael Ortiz
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Ortiz had called the police for help after experiencing suicidal thoughts, per Business Insider. Officers arrived to Ortiz’s apartment building to find him naked and agitated on the balcony. Police say there was a struggle when one police officer mistook his gun for a Taser and shot Ortiz in the back. He was left paralyzed from the waist down.
Crump called on the police department to release the full footage of the incident, believing the shooting was no accident.
Erik Cantu
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Cantu, 17, was shot by a San Antonio police officer in a McDonald’s parking lot, according to NBC News. Per the body camera footage, Cantu was parked when an officer yanked open his door and ordered him to get out. Cantu allegedly put the car in reverse and tried to back up, causing the door to hit the officer. The cop opened fire on Cantu and is currently on life support.
Crump represented the family along with Paul Grinke and claimed Cantu was racially profiled.
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