Chilton County Commission Chairman Tim Mims has filed a civil lawsuit against Marengo County, the city of Linden and several law enforcement officers there.

The suit follows an Oct. 2, 2009, incident in which Mims was arrested and charged with misdemeanor assault during a Linden-Maplesville football game. On Tuesday, Dec. 1, Mims was found not guilty of those charges in Marengo County District Court.

Reached by phone Tuesday, Mims did confirm that he had filed the suit, but, on advice from his attorney, declined to comment further.

Champ Lyons III, of the King, Horsley and Lyons firm in Birmingham, is representing Mims.

Lyons said the case was filed March 15 in U.S. District Court’s Southern District of Alabama.

Marengo County, the Marengo County Sheriff’s Department, Sheriff Jesse R. Langley, deputy Robert Alston, the city of Linden, Police Chief Scott McClure, and officers Dexter Waters and Demetrius Marshall are all named as defendants in the suit.

Lyons said his client would seek both compensatory and punitive damages, in an unspecified amount.

“We’ll leave that up to the judge and jury,” Lyons said.

Lyons said the officers used excessive force in arresting Mims — plus he said the commissioner did nothing wrong.

“He did absolutely nothing wrong, (but) he was slammed to the ground,” Lyons said.

Since the incident, Mims underwent neck surgery to repair ruptured discs he said are the result of law enforcement officers from Linden and Marengo County knocking him down and jumping on him.

“His neck will never be the same,” Lyons said.

Efforts to reach Marengo County Attorney Woody Dinning Jr. late Tuesday were unsuccessful.

Also on Tuesday, the Marengo County Commission unanimously voted to deny a liability claim, meaning they believe the county did nothing wrong, according to a story from The Demopolis Times.