Man Sues Camden Police for More than Half a Million Dollars
CAMDEN, Tenn. – A battle 10 years in the making is brewing in Benton County. On one side, Camden Police who said they arrested a drug dealer and confiscated what he bought with the money he made. On the other side, Larry Ross who said he is the victim of bad police work. “As far as his life, it destroyed him. His health is gone, he can no long work to try to make a living,” Terry Leonard Ross’ attorney said. According to court documents, after months of surveilling Ross, Camden Police got a drug warrant and searched his home and confiscated more than $628,000 as well as drug paraphernalia. During a 2006 hearing a financial expert witness for the state testified that Ross could not have generated that kind of money from his personal business. Ross attributed his large sums of cash in part to his grandfather. “He worked himself to death and he saved every dime, and the government took it away from him. They destroyed this mans life,” Leonard said. During the 2006 trial, a Memphis judge ruled in favor of Ross saying even if the state had proven he was a major drug dealer they failed to prove the money, 41 guns, house boat and several cars were purchased with drug money. “We’ve got the best judicial system in the world. It’s not perfect and sometimes bad things happen to good folks,” Leonard said. He also said while Ross will never get back all he’s lost he hopes this case can serve as an example not just in Benton County but nationwide. “I think we got a good police department and excellent sheriff’s department. But as in any profession you’re gonna have a bad apple or two.” The Camden Police Department was advised by their lawyers not want to comment on the upcoming negotiations with Ross. Ross and his attorney are expected to begin meeting with Camden Police in the coming month to determine if a settlement can be reached. If not, Ross is seeking damages for nearly a decade of attorney fees as well as material items lost.
