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Nic Langley on Dec. 13, after his release from jail (Special to AL.com)

When Nicholas Langley watched the TV news last month and saw a small Indian man in Madison taken to the ground by police, he texted his lawyer. Langley told him: That's the same maneuver police used on me.

Langely watched as the officer in Madison held the Indian man's hands behind his back, then slipped a leg in front of the man and slammed him face-first into the earth. The man, Sureshbhai Patel, required spinal surgery. Gov. Robert Bentley has since apologized to India.

Langley says a Morgan County deputy in December slipped a leg in front of his legs and propelled him face-first into a concrete floor. Both sides agree Langley was handcuffed at the time.

Lt. Terry Kelly of the Morgan County Sheriff's Office told AL.com that Langley was resisting the deputies' attempt to remove his handcuffs. "They did what is called a front leg sweep," said Kelly during an interview on March 2.

Langley sued today in federal court.

Langley, 31, has no criminal record beyond traffic tickets. He works for a government contractor. He was taken to jail after midnight on Dec. 13, facing two charges over a bottle of liquor found in a backseat in a dry county.

After the leg sweep, one front tooth popped out completely. Lt. Kelly said the tooth was booked into evidence along with the rest of Langley's possessions.

"The tooth wasn't broken, it came out root and all," said Lt. Kelly, who was tasked with investigating the excessive force complaint filed by Langley.

Lt. Kelly said reports from deputies show that Langley resisted officers once inside the jail. "He was very combative," said Kelly. "He was threatening to kill the deputies."

"There is no excuse for slamming a handcuffed man face-first into the ground, let alone into concrete," said Hank Sherrod, Langley's attorney, who also represents Patel in Madison. "This was a brutal act of excessive force that occurs when a deputy believes he will not be held accountable."

The suit names Deputy Brandon Sain as the lone defendant. The suit, which requests a jury trial, alleges excessive force and illegal seizure.

Langley says he awoke to see his tooth in front of him. His top jaw was broken. He lost one front tooth and cracked another. He has since had two more teeth removed. He said he may yet have two more teeth ground down to allow for a bridge. He had stitches in four spots inside his mouth, on his lips and under his chin.

Nic Langley on Dec. 13, 2014 (Special to AL.com)

Langley had been a passenger in a friend's car when they were stopped after midnight in rural Morgan County at a crossroads known as Cotaco. Police found a liquor bottle without a cap in the backseat. Police charged the driver with improper lane usage and operating a vehicle under the influence.

Deputies charged both Langley and the driver with possession of an open container and with a dry country violation known as illegal possession of prohibited alcohol.

Langley said the liquor wasn't his, he hadn't been driving and he didn't believe he'd broken any laws. He said he'd had four beers that night but was not intoxicated. The suit contends Langley was unaware of the bottle deputies found in the backseat.

Langley said he asked the deputy to loosen the handcuffs. Langley said the deputy repeatedly called him "dumb" and an "idiot" and worse. Langley said he called the officer a "pig" and worse. "He was cussing. I was cussing back," said Langley.

Langley contends the officer turned on loud Christmas carols, speeding up and then jamming on the breaks while driving to jail. The suit contends that Langley and his friend were handcuffed and would slam into the divider when the patrol car stopped.

"In the patrol car on the way to the jail, Sain was verbally abusive to Langley, and Langley cursed Sain back," claims the suit. "During the exchange, Sain threatened Langley, telling Langley he was going to kick Langley's ass."

Lt. Kelly said it was the other way around.

Kelly said paperwork from that night says Langley, while at the jail, threatened the lives of the deputies and made sexual remarks toward a female deputy. Langley said he did curse one deputy, but did not threaten deputies. He said the sexual remarks were part of rap lyrics the deputies asked him to perform shortly before the leg sweep.

Langley said his friend was quiet throughout and that he lost sight of him after they arrived at the jail. The suit argues that while officers walked his friend in the "usual entrance, which had a video camera, Sain walked Langley into the jail through an entrance without a video camera."

"They took me in this kind of roll-up door. I didn't know. I'd never been to jail before," Langley said during an interview.

Lt. Kelly said earlier this month there is nothing unusual about using the area with the roll-up door. "He was brought in at the sally port, which is where deputies bring in their prisoners," said Kelly.

Kelly said he has looked at the cameras, but there was no video of the incident and there is no video coverage in that area.

"I'm walking, the next thing I know he does the exact same trip that they did on Patel," said Langley. "Identical."

This would have been almost two months before the Patel incident took place.

The suit claims: "Inside the jail, Sain used a leg sweep on Langley to slam Langley face first into the concrete floor, knocking one tooth out, breaking two teeth, damaging other teeth, breaking his jaw, separating Langley's lip from his gums, and causing lacerations and a concussion."

When he came to, he was given a small piece of gauze and placed in a cell. He slept on the floor. Langley was released from jail the next morning and went to the emergency room in Cullman.

The charges were later signed by Deputy Chad Sain. But Langley contends that is not the deputy who arrested him nor slammed him to the ground.

Reached by phone late last month, Deputy Chad Sain said: "I don't think I can discuss that with you."

The suit filed this afternoon instead names Deputy Brandon Sain, brother to Chad Sain.

Attempts to reach the department Tuesday for further comment on the lawsuit were unsuccessful. As of March 2, Kelly said that Morgan County had not concluded its internal investigation.

Instead of paying the two $300 fines and ending the case, Langley had decided to fight the alcohol charges in court. "It wasn't his liquor," said his criminal defense attorney, Brian White.

"I have a clear record," said Langley during an interview last month. "I don't want anything on my record."

Langley was scheduled to have a bench trial on the liquor charges today, but the case was postponed.

Langley was released from jail the next morning and went to the emergency room in Cullman. He contacted Sherrod on Dec. 14, who told him to file a complaint. Langley went to the department and met with a senior officer, but he said they would not take a written statement.

"I'm not denying that I didn't do anything wrong," said Langley of the verbal exchanges with deputies. "But I didn't commit a crime."

"Honestly," he said, "I'm still confused. I don't know what rights I have."