Man who claimed Rock Hill police held him naked at gunpoint settles lawsuit against city

The city of Rock Hill settled a lawsuit this month with a man who claimed he was “naked and afraid” when held at gunpoint by police in 2019, according to court documents.

Jethro Devane, through his lawyer, Justin Bamberg, filed suits in federal and York County civil court in December 2020. Devane, who was 71 at the time of the incident, died in 2022, and the lawsuits went on with his estate as the plaintiff, documents show.

The state lawsuit “fully settled” Jan. 11 after a seven-hour mediation on Jan. 4, York County civil court documents obtained by The Herald show. Bamberg, a lawyer representing the city and others were at the mediation, documents show.

Terms of the settlement were not included in court records.

The federal lawsuit was dismissed because of the state court settlement.

Katie Quinn, a spokesperson for the city of Rock Hill, said in a statement to The Herald Thursday the city had no further comment, “besides what’s in the public records related to the settlement.”

Attempts by The Herald to reach Bamberg were unsuccessful.

The Devane lawsuit

The lawsuit said Devane believed Rock Hill Police Department officers would shoot him if he did not comply with orders as officers searched the area for juveniles. The officers did not have a search warrant, nor did they ask for permission to search Devane’s home, according to the lawsuit. Bamberg said in a written statement after the lawsuit filing that Devane was humiliated and subjected to an illegal search.

Police and the city of Rock Hill said in a 2019 statement officers were in the area of Devane’s home after an alleged car break-in nearby, possibly by juveniles. Officers in pursuit on foot ended up in a yard on the block behind Devane’s home, then saw that the door to Devane’s home was open, the city statement said.

“The officers observed the grass to be uncut, a swimming pool unmaintained, and the door of the residence standing completely open,” the 2019 city statement said. “There were no lights on inside the residence or outside the residence. Officers believed the residence to be unoccupied.”

The city said in the statement officers had reasonable belief the persons they were pursuing may have gone into the house.

The lawsuit alleged civil rights violations and other claims.

Devane was “obviously an elderly man far removed from his days as a juvenile or teenager,“ the lawsuit stated. Devane “was also buck naked and unarmed,” the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit said Devane initially filed a complaint with the police department. The police department’s internal investigation found an officer to be discourteous but no other action was taken.

In a written response to the lawsuit in 2021, the city denied Devane’s claims.

Second Rock Hill settlement in three months

Bamberg, Devane’s lawyer, is a Democratic S.C. General Assembly member from Bamberg County.

Bamberg reached a $500,000 settlement in a lawsuit against Rock Hill for Travis Price in late 2023. Price, a man with no record, was charged with hindering police by Rock Hill officers in June 2021 in an arrest caught on video that sparked three days of protests in the city over police tactics. The video and protests became a national story.

Prosecutors later dropped the charge and Price sued the city before the case settled.