Mt. Vernon sued for death of man who was in police custody

MOBILE, Ala. (AP) - The father of an Alabama man who died in police custody says in a new federal lawsuit that officers "staged" his suicide to cover up what they describe as a brutal beating by officers while he was handcuffed and on his knees.

In the lawsuit filed this week, Framon Weaver Sr. says Mount Vernon police officers used a stun gun during the beating of his son, Framon Weaver Jr., who had been arrested Dec. 17, 2010 on public intoxication charges.

The lawsuit in U.S. District Court maintains that Mount Vernon officers beat him, and later placed his body in a jail cell, with a bedsheet tied around his neck to make his death appear to have been a suicide.

A message left with the Mount Vernon mayor's office was not immediately returned Wednesday.