Man Suing Police After He Was ‘Cooked’ on Hot Asphalt

A Phoenix man who suffered horrific, third-degree burns across his face, arms, legs, and torso from being pinned to the ground by police officers is set to sue the city for a staggering $15 million.

Michael Kenyon, 30, was walking through a parking lot on July 6, 2024, with temperatures reaching 114 degrees in central Phoenix, when he was stopped and questioned by police officers, who were in fact looking for a different man. In cell phone footage taken by a witness from a nearby balcony, officers can be seen detaining Kenyon, who was simply confused about why he was being targeted.

When he attempted to stand up, a scuffle ensued and the officers threw him to the ground and kneeled on his neck and back, pinning him to the burning hot asphalt for more than four minutes. Kenyon could be heard in the footage screaming in pain and pleading with officers, begging them, "Please… please… I can’t move. I didn’t do anything."

Kenyon told ABC 15 Arizona that his skin was already bubbling by the time he was eventually placed in the back of a police cruiser. All told, he spent over a month in the hospital, and his injuries can be seen in graphic footage provided to the station. He also now has entire chunks of flesh missing from above his knees.

Though Kenyon had a warrant out for his arrest, which he says both he and the officers were unaware of, he was never charged with a crime. His attorneys filed an official notice of claim on Dec. 30, which states that he will settle the case for $15,530,000, but is prepared to sue the city in federal court.

"Michael is 30 years old. At an average life expectancy, he should live another 42 years," the claim states. "That is 15,330 days. We are confident that not a single one of you would choose to live in Michael’s disfigured body and traumatized mind for $1,000 a day—and we are confident a jury would agree that this is a modest sum for what the Phoenix Police Department has caused to him."

"Four City of Phoenix police officer pressed a human being [on] black asphalt, during the heat of the day, for four minutes," the claim continues, citing a lack of training and supervision. "Indeed, through 1,147 pages of Operations Orders, there does not appear to be a single word guiding officers about the severe risk of injury posed by holding subjects against pavement."

During a previous interview, Bobby DiCello, one of the lawyers representing Kenyon, blasted the department for "demonstrating an utter disregard for human life over and over again." DiCello added hauntingly: "This young man was burned to the third degree because his skin was cooked on asphalt."

The city of Phoenix has not released body camera footage from the incident, despite media requests. A spokesperson for the city likewise declined to comment on the claim but told ABC 15 that the incident is still being reviewed under internal police investigation.