Afroman Police Raid Video: Seven police officers have filed a lawsuit against the rapper Afroman, claiming that the artist improperly used footage of them conducting a search warrant at his residence in his music videos.
In a lawsuit filed on March 13, six law enforcement officers from the Adams County Sheriff’s Office in Ohio accused a rapper of making money off of their “humiliation” and “mental distress” and accused him of doing so in a way that violated Ohio law.
According to the lawsuit that was obtained by Insider, they asked for up to one hundred thousand dollars of the profits made from the sales of his songs, music videos, concert tickets, and merchandise, all of which they claim were promoted using footage of the police officers without their consent.
When the police went to Afroman’s house in August, they did so with a search warrant in hand. Afroman, whose real name is Joseph Foreman, was mentioned in the warrant, a copy of which was obtained by the reporter for the FOX affiliate station WXIX-TV. The warrant was issued for an investigation into kidnapping as well as possession of illegal drugs or drug paraphernalia. Both of these crimes were investigated.
When the police arrived at Foreman’s home, he was not there to greet them. However, the rapper was able to obtain footage of the raid from his family’s security cameras as well as from his wife, who filmed the raid. Following the raid, no criminal charges were brought against him.
Afroman Police Raid Video
After that, Foreman included the clips in music videos for at least two of his songs that were uploaded to YouTube.
In the song “Lemon Pound Cake,” Foreman sings about the time when the police came to his house looking for drugs but instead found a lemon pound cake on the kitchen counter.
Foreman incorporates clips of the officers searching through his belongings into his song “Will You Help Me Repair My Door?”
According to the lawsuit filed by the officers, Foreman’s music videos and multiple social media posts he made using footage from the videos led to death threats being made against them. Additionally, they stated that they “suffered embarrassment, ridicule, emotional distress, and humiliation, as well as a loss of reputation.”
The complaint also includes a demand that the rapper stop using footage of the officers in his music videos and on social media.
In an Instagram post published on Thursday, Foreman provided his response to the lawsuit by stating that he intends to file a countersuit.
“I am a law-abiding tax-paying citizen who was violated by criminals camouflaged by law-enforcement!” he wrote in his letter. “I am a victim of lawbreakers posing as law enforcement.”
He continued by saying, “My video footage is my property.”
After business hours, Insider’s requests for comments were sent to the Adams County Sheriff’s Office as well as an attorney representing Foreman, but neither of them immediately responded.