A Monroeville man has filed a civil lawsuit alleging that a former Pitcairn police officer assaulted him two years ago.

Duane Beam sued Pitcairn and former officer Parker Reed in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court on May 26 — just before the statute of limitations expired. The suit also alleges that the borough fostered an environment in which Reed’s behavior “was inevitable.”

Reed could not be reached for comment, and attorney Robert Grimm, who is representing the borough, declined to comment.

According to the suit and Beam’s attorney, Michael Louik:

On May 26, 2007, Beam was notified of a fire at an apartment building on Broadway Avenue in Pitcairn that houses a heating and air conditioning business that his brother owned.

Beam stated he was walking near Broadway and Center avenues when Reed “without any provocation, cause or justification whatsoever, grabbed, assaulted and forced (him) to the ground.”

Reed repeatedly shoved his head against the pavement, then handcuffed him and detained him, the suit states. Carlton Nagy, then the Pitcairn police chief, declined to comment, citing pending litigation.

Reed resigned from the Pitcairn police department in August 2007 after the borough suspended him following a domestic dispute at his home.

Beam claims he still is undergoing medical treatment for injuries and that his health may be permanently impaired, according to the suit.

He is seeking compensatory and punitive damages as well as court costs from Reed and Pitcairn.

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