Christopher Johnson wanted to smile for his booking photo last July at the Harris County jail.

The jailers may have had other ideas.

The 38-year-old man said he was choked by two jailers because he wouldn't assume a more serious pose for the camera, according to a federal lawsuit filed this week against the Harris County Sheriff's Office.

The lawsuit - which claims the jailers and a deputy violated his civil rights by choking him and deprived him of his constitutional right to free speech - is the second lawsuit in as many weeks to allege poor treatment during processing at the Harris County jail.

"My client is severely frustrated," said Andre Evans, Johnson's attorney.

A sheriff's deputy arrested Johnson, 38, on July 25 for allegedly driving drunk on his motorcycle, according to the latest lawsuit. During intake at the jail, guards took several photos of Johnson as part of the department's usual booking process.

When a guard told him to stop smiling, Johnson replied, "This is how I always take my pictures. … I'm going to beat this case. Why wouldn't I smile?" according to the suit.

One guard replied, "we gon' to make you stop smiling," then brought in a colleague, according to the suit. The jailers then placed a hand on each side of his neck and choked him for 30 seconds, the suit states. A photo included in the lawsuit shows Johnson pinned against a wall with a hand wrapped around his neck - still smiling.

In the photo, one jailer appears to be holding him by the back of his neck and his shirt, while another jailer's hand can be seen wrapped around the front of his neck.

Afterward, when Johnson asked for medical treatment because his throat hurt, he was told to "sit down and shut up," according to the suit.

First DWI accusation

"Mr. Johnson states that he has recurring nightmares and sporadic feelings of rage due to the treatment he endured while being processed into the Harris County jail," according to the suit.

Other employees at the jail knew about the assault and failed to intervene, the suit says. It is seeking unspecified damages from Harris County, the deputy who arrested Johnson and the two jailers.

Court records show Johnson has been arrested four times in Harris County, beginning with a traffic case in 1998, in which he pleaded guilty to driving with a suspended license and failing to identify himself to a police officer. He was arrested again in 1999, for again driving with a suspended license. He landed in jail in 2003 for felony assault, but a grand jury ultimately no-billed him on that charge. His latest case - for driving while intoxicated - is set for trial beginning June 27, said Morris Overstreet, his criminal defense attorney.

"We have our experts and we're ready to go," he said, adding that the most recent arrest is the first time Johnson has ever been accused of driving while intoxicated.

Johnson's suit is the second in the last two weeks to allege such treatment at the Harris County jail. Late last month, lawyers for 28-year-old Michael Alaniz filed an excessive-force lawsuit against Harris County alleging that jailers had assaulted the construction worker after he complained about being strip-searched in front of other inmates.

In the suit, Alaniz also alleged that a jailer choked him as he was being photographed.

"The way he grabbed my throat, I felt he was really trying to hurt me," he said Thursday afternoon. "He wasn't trying to calm me down or get me to pipe down. He easily could have said verbally, 'shut up' or 'be quiet.' … It didn't have to get to (the) point he started choking me."

The sheriff's office has refused to provide the Chronicle with a photograph from Alaniz's arrest, citing the pending lawsuit.

No policy against smiling

When contacted about Johnson's suit, Harris County officials said they had just received it and were reviewing it.

"Our office takes allegations of this type seriously. … We will respond to the allegations at the appropriate time," said Robert Soard, first assistant attorney for Harris County.

Ryan Sullivan, a department spokesman, said the sheriff's department does not have a policy against smiling in mugshots.

"It is not uncommon for detention personnel to assist impaired or uncooperative detainees while taking booking photographs," he said. "An initial review of the photograph in question appears to be consistent with proper procedures for assisting an impaired detainee in order to obtain a photograph. The Harris County Sheriff's Office believes that proper procedure was followed during the course of Mr. Johnson's booking. Should any evidence arise to the contrary, proper administrative actions will be taken."

Alaniz said the news of Johnson's suit - just weeks after his own - came as a surprise.

"Maybe they need to teach (the jailers) anger management and how to handle certain situations," he said.