RETRIAL BEGINS FOR HUNTSVILLE OFFICER

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (AP) – Jurors will begin hearing testimony in the retrial of an Alabama police officer who injured an Indian grandfather when he slammed him to the ground.

Federal prosecutors will call their first witnesses Wednesday in their second attempt to convict Eric Parker of using excessive force against 58-year-old Sureshbhai Patel.

Parker threw Patel to the ground after answering a call about a suspicious man. Patel was walking in the suburban neighborhood where he had just moved to live with his son.

A prosecutor told jurors there was no justifying the takedown that left Patel partially paralyzed. Defense lawyer Robert Tuten said Patel repeatedly disobeyed officers. Tuten said there was an unfortunate language barrier but visitors are expected to speak a country’s dominant language.

Parker’s first trial ended with a hung jury.