Jonathan Meister is deaf man who was at a friend’s house in Hawthorne, California, when the police wee called on him because he was mistakenly believed to be a thief.  When the police arrived, he indicated to them he was deaf.  However, the police refused to communicate with him properly and instead, they punched him the face repeatedly, shot him with a taser and beat him severely such that he had to be hospitalized.  Charges against him were dropped.  Jonathan settled a lawsuit against the police department for $55,000.  The Department also said it would change its communication policies with deaf people.