Ed "NJ Weedman" Forchion wants his camera equipment back. He claims it holds proof that police were lying about a dispute earlier this year
TRENTON - In an ongoing legal battle between Ed "NJ Weedman" Forchion and Trenton police, a couple of pieces of evidence are key.
Forchion's DVRs and computer hard drives contain surveillance footage that could prove police were lying about a 30-person street fight they broke up outside Forchion's East State Street establishment earlier this year, Forchion's attorney, Edward Heyburn said.
But the equipment was confiscated by police during a raid and now Forchion is trying everything to get it back.
On Tuesday, Heyburn filed a motion on Forchion's behalf, calling for the police department to return the hard drives and DVRs. He claimed that the equipment contained footage from Feb. 28, 2016, during one of the first disputes between Forchion and city police.
That night, police have said they went to Forchion's East State Street combination restaurant and "pot temple" around 2:30 a.m. to find 30 people gathered outside. A caller had told police the crowd was gathered for a street fight.
Only one person was charged with resisting arrest that night, but the incident put a black mark on the relationship between police and Forchion, he says.
Forchion filed a civil rights complaint weeks later and said that his surveillance cameras caught the February incident and showed that there were only five people - not 30 - convening outside his establishment that morning and that they weren't fighting.
"(Police) act like it's a melee," Heyburn said.
He added that Forchion's surveillance footage proved police were lying - not just in statements to the public, but in court documents as well.
Police obtained a search warrant that allowed them to raid Forchion's temple and restaurant in April, during which they seized the camera equipment and hard drives containing all the video footage, Heyburn said.
They also arrested Forchion and several other people.
"The primary purpose of the raid was to seize the DVRs and hard drive, which contained exculpatory evidence, evidence for the civil rights case and evidence of (police) perjury," Forchion said in an affidavit.
Heyburn said he's requested two probable cause hearings but has received no response in the case. He added that the camera and computer equipment is evidence in Forchion's civil and criminal cases and should be in his hands.
Heyburn is also requesting a preliminary injunction to keep police from deleting any evidence that might be on the equipment.
Anna Merriman may be reached at amerriman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @anna_merriman Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook.