Eugene says bodycams ‘more accurately’ depict full story of officer punching man

A Eugene police officer provided “some warning” to a man in handcuffs before punching him and shocking him with a Taser, the city said Friday, Sept. 4, in reply to an excessive force lawsuit.

Jehoshaphat Commandest filed the lawsuit seeking up to $1 million after a Jan. 11, 2025, encounter in which he was handcuffed while detained on suspicion of trespassing.

Dashcam video provided by an attorney representing Commandest showed Stephen Lahm, a Eugene police officer who later resigned “in lieu of termination,” punching him repeatedly in the head and then shocking him twice with a Taser. 

The lawsuit contends the force used by Lahm “was not objectively reasonable,” and alleged that neither Lahm nor another officer, Lindsey Collier, issued a warning to Commandest that physical force was going to be used against him.

In response, “the City Defendants admit that it was practical to provide a warning and allege that Defendant Lahm did provide some warning,” Friday’s court filing states.

The city’s 15-page response refers repeatedly to footage of the encounter from a body-worn camera, arguing that the bodycam video provides a more accurate depiction of what happened.

“[T]here is body-worn camera footage of this interaction and to the extent the footage more accurately and contextually shows what occurred, the City Defendants admit that is what occurred,” the city said in response to various descriptions in the original lawsuit of what took place between the officers and Commandest. 

The city declined to provide body-worn camera footage in response to a records request from Lookout Eugene-Springfield.

City officials have declined to comment to Lookout Eugene-Springfield on the lawsuit or about Lahm, who state records show resigned November 2025 “in lieu of termination.” 

The lawsuit and a document provided to Lookout by Commandest’s attorney, Derek Larwick, describe a finding by Eugene’s police auditor that Lahm violated the police department’s use-of-force policy and also its conduct policy, and that Chief Chris Skinner agreed with the auditor’s recommendations.

In its response Friday, the city “admits that it concluded Defendant Lahm had violated several policies as articulated in its adjudication of his use of force related to plaintiff,” the court filing states.

Though not mentioned in the lawsuit, the Eugene Police Department provided videos of the encounter, including bodycam footage, to an outside police agency to review Lahm’s conduct for possible criminal charges.

Reports released to Lookout by the Salem Police Department referred to video and audio from bodycams worn by Lahm and Collier. 

The Salem investigative report described Lahm as telling the handcuffed Commandest he would be “thrown to the ground” and “drive-stunned” if he did not stop pulling away from officers holding his arms.

The city’s response to the lawsuit filed Friday does not refer to the Salem investigation, which was forwarded to the Lane County District Attorney’s Office. Prosecutors declined to file any charges against Lahm. 

Chief Deputy District Attorney David Schwartz, in a memo released along with the Salem investigative report to Lookout, described the dash-camera video as “troubling” but noted the lack of participation by Commandest in the Salem investigation, concluding there was “insufficient evidence” to file any criminal charge. 

Schwartz asked Salem police to hold evidence until April 1, 2028, because “events may result in reconsideration of the filing of this case.”

The city’s filing Friday argues, in part, “contributory negligence” by Commandest. 

The court filing states that a legal claim of negligence by the city and officer made by Commandest should be “barred in whole, or in part, by his own fault, including” that he was “[u]ncooperative and acting unreasonably under the circumstances,” “[f]ailing to obey lawful orders from a peace officer,” and “[r]esisting arrest,” among other alleged conduct.

Commandest was charged with misdemeanor resisting arrest, but the charge was ultimately dismissed in Eugene Municipal Court. He pleaded guilty to misdemeanor trespassing.

The city’s response states Commandest’s reported age is 27 years old. The original lawsuit gave his age as 41.

The lawsuit is now proceeding in U.S. District Court in Eugene, with the city seeking the transfer out of Lane County Circuit Court, where the lawsuit was first filed July 30.