Another day, another egregious “mistake” that could’ve turned deadly by police.

According to WIS News 10, a Blythewood, South Carolina family’s federal lawsuit lays out a disturbing, enraging account of a traffic stop that reads less like policing and more like reckless, unchecked aggression. Kartrez Rush, his wife Jasmine Scott, and their three children say they were held at gunpoint by South Carolina State Trooper Kyle Lyman during a May 2025 stop in Sumter County—an encounter that appears to have been built on little more than a vague, unverified tip. 

The family was driving home from an event in a Dodge Ram towing a U-Haul when a 911 caller reported a vaguely similar truck allegedly involved in stealing dirt bikes and an ATV. But even that flimsy accusation didn’t match reality: the caller described a different number of ആള occupants and failed to confirm key details like the license plate. Despite these glaring discrepancies, Lyman initiated what the lawsuit describes as a high-risk stop—without verifying the information or confirming the vehicle actually matched the report. 

What followed is as alarming as it is infuriating. Before Rush could even fully pull over, he says he saw Lyman pointing a gun at the family while shouting commands. Their children, trapped in the back seat, were terrified—asking if they were about to be shot. No officer approached calmly. No one explained anything. No one even asked for identification. Instead, the situation escalated immediately into a full-blown show of force. 

Rush and Scott’s daughter spoke at a public press conference held by the family and their attorney Tyler Bailey.

“They were yelling with their guns drawn on us. And I started recording,” said Kaitlyn Rush, the couple’s daughter, who recorded part of the encounter. “I was scared on that day because I didn’t know if my parents were going to be shot and killed.”

Rush and Scott were ordered out of the vehicle at gunpoint, forced to walk backward, then pushed to their knees and handcuffed—all in front of their children and onlookers. The kids were eventually pulled from the truck, shaken and afraid, while their parents remained restrained. And still, no clear justification was given. 

Then comes one of the most damning allegations: the lawsuit claims Lyman later lied to fellow officers, falsely stating that the “be on the lookout” alert included a matching license plate—something the complaint says was simply not true.  This wasn’t just a mistake; it was an alleged fabrication used to justify an already unjustifiable stop.

The family was detained for nearly an hour before being released—after officers searched their trailer and found nothing. No stolen property. No crime. Just a traumatized family left to deal with the aftermath of a needless, militarized encounter. 

As WIS reports, the lawsuit accuses the state and Lyman of excessive force, false imprisonment, and violations of constitutional rights. And at the center of it all is a chilling question: how does a baseless tip, riddled with inconsistencies, escalate into guns drawn on a family with children—backed up by alleged lies after the fact?

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