ASHTABULA — “Deliberate lies.”

That’s what City Solicitor Michael Franklin, on Friday, called the story of an African American man who claims two white police officers, including a

female officer, brutally beat him last week.

“(The victim) Mr. (Stephen) Boles is commonly known as a drug dealer in this community,” Franklin said. “There’s no racial profiling. Everything that happened to Mr. Boles he brought on himself.”

According to Boles’ attorney, Mark Hanni of Youngstown, his client was beaten, choked and stun-gunned Jan. 28 outside his Jefferson Avenue home and then handcuffed to a gurney long before any charges were filed against him.

Franklin said the officers, a male and female, never choked Boles. A male officer used his baton, and a female officer used a TASER device to subdue Boles because he would not comply with the officers’ orders, he said.

When a third male officer arrived, Boles was stunned again, police were able to handcuff and take him to Ashtabula County Medical Center, Franklin said.

“It took three officers to control him,” he said. “He never lost consciousness as far as I can determine.”

Boles was transported to Huron Road Hospital in Cleveland because of the seriousness of his injuries.

The incident began when police were called to Boles’ home for a domestic dispute, according to police reports. When police arrived, Boles was outside the residence. He repeatedly asked officers why they were there and would not comply with their requests to “stand down,” the report said. He struggled and fought with police, reports show.

Hanni said his client tells a different story. Boles suffered severe injuries that landed him in Huron Road’s intensive care unit for several days after the officers brutalized him, Hanni said.

When the police department was asked Jan. 29 about the incident, Sgt. Joseph Cellitti said, “It’s under investigation.”

No charges were filed immediately against Boles. Franklin said Friday that is because he does not file charges until he has a complete police report in his hands. The police officers finished the reports late Monday, and he filed charges Tuesday night, he said.

When police arrested Boles on Wednesday, he was wearing a bandage around his head and was out riding in a car with friends, according to reports. Police reports show that Boles had a bag of marijuana on him.

“It seems he recovered enough by Feb. 3 to be back out on the street with drugs in his possession,” Franklin said.

Boles was charged with marijuana possession in addition to the other long list of charges Franklin filed stemming from the Jan. 28 incident, court records show, among them possession of crack cocaine and trafficking drugs.

Boles didn’t make it to court Thursday because he complained of chest pains and had to go back to the hospital, police said.

On Friday, he appeared in Municipal Court, flanked by his attorney. Hanni said Boles’ constitutional rights have been violated. He’s filing a civil rights case in federal court and asking the U.S. Justice Department to investigate.

Police Chief Robert Stell continues to stand behind his officers.

“They are not under investigation by the police department,” Stell said.

Stell said Boles was combative and an assault rifle and two loaded ammunition magazines were found at the scene.

Franklin said Boles also had a stash of drugs.

Neighbors who witnessed the altercation say Boles was not armed. They do not want to have their names in the Star Beacon for fear of retribution by police.

“You don’t talk when you are black,” one neighbor said. “There are no black officers on the police force.”

Franklin said he’s convinced the police officers responded properly.

“No law-abiding citizen needs to be afraid of the police,” he said.