LOUISVILLE, Ky. — FBI Louisville is investigating accusations that officers violated Joshua Tyler's civil rights during after a 2021 traffic stop that escalated into a miles-long police pursuit.
Newly obtained dash-camera video from a Kentucky State Police (KSP) cruiser is now under the microscope. The family of a Hardin County man who pleaded guilty to endangering officers believes their son was a victim of excessive use of force, and now they're calling for justice.
"I literally got sick. I threw up," said Joe Tyler, Joshua's father, who received the video and watched it for the first time this week. "Hearing it is worse than watching it because you hear your son yelling for help."
In February 2021, a traffic stop turned into a full-fledged KSP pursuit of Tyler from Elizabethtown all the way to just outside West Point.
The dash-cam video given to the family just this week shows Joshua Tyler getting out of his car with his hands up, once police caught up to him.
In the video, you see two Hardin County Sheriff's deputies and eventually a KSP trooper step in, where things escalate quickly and a series of repeated punches are thrown.
Joe Tyler admits his son did wrong, but says he didn't deserve this kind of violence and injury.
"We don't condone what he's done wrong. but what we do condone how they handled arresting him," he said. "They don't deserve to be cops, they don't deserve to be collecting paychecks. They're trained to not act like this, and they did. They did wrong."
Over the phone, Hardin County Sheriff John Ward says his office investigated the incident internally and determined his two deputies were warranted in their use of force. He told WHAS11 that during the chase, Tyler tried to hit another cruiser.
And during a moment on the ground, Ward says Tyler resisted arrest and at one point reached toward his waist band. Ward says a knife was later found on him.
In the video, what looks to be a knife drops beneath Tyler's body when he puts his hands up.
Joe Tyler says he's since apologized to his son, who's in custody and prepared to serve a sentence of 7 years after pleading guilty late last month to charges of wanton endangerment, evading officers and criminal mischief from the 2021 incident.
"I did not believe my son did not fight back at first -- I wasn't sure," Tyler said. "But once I watched it... He stopped, put his hands up, went to his knees and was going to his belly when he was grabbed. [He was] doing exactly what they asked. There was no reason to start being physical."
In a statement sent to WHAS11, the Hardin County Sheriff's Office said officers "only used the amount of force necessary to gain compliance."
FBI Louisville says it's aware of the video and will address this matter accordingly.
As of Thursday evening, KSP has not responded to an email request for comment.
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