Former SC trooper charged in the beating of a Myrtle Beach man now faces lawsuit
A former South Carolina Highway Patrol officer who was arrested for beating a Myrtle Beach man he pulled over while off-duty, is now being sued.
David Eck, along with the S.C. Department of Public Safety, the SCHP, the City of Myrtle Beach and the Myrtle Beach Police Department, are being sued for gross negligence, excessive force and reckless indifference. The lawsuit was filed May 4 in Horry County court.
On May 5, 2019, Miguel Angel De Leon Aguilar was pulled over by Eck, who was off-duty and driving his personal vehicle with his wife on Little River Road in Myrtle Beach. Eck called police and told them he was an off-duty officer following a possible drunk driver.
Eck followed De Leon to his home and a fight broke out, according to an arrest warrant. Eck punched, choked, and pulled a gun on De Leon while taking him into custody, according to the lawsuit. A neighbor said she saw Eck punch De Leon multiple times and point a gun at a man and a child who came out of the home, according to testimony given to investigators, detailed in separation documents from the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy.
The neighbor, who gave testimony to South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division, said Eck put De Leon in a headlock while dragging him to the ground and beating “the immortal crap” out of him, the lawsuit said. Eck told De Leon he was going to jail because “you almost killed my family,” according to the testimony. He then rubbed De Leon’s face on the ground and punched him at least twice.
Two other neighbors described the beating similarly in testimony to SLED, calling Eck “real pissed off”, “freaking out” and “losing his mind.” Eck, a Master Trooper, had worked with SCHP since 2000.
Myrtle Beach police arrived and took De Leon into custody. It is unclear whether he was charged with a crime.
After an investigation by SLED and the S.C. Department of Public Safety, Eck was arrested on Feb. 14, 2020 for assault and battery — two days after he was suspended from his SCHP duties. He was fired on April 7, 2020.
De Leon is suing for an unspecified amount of damages related to the alleged assault. The lawsuit alleges that the defendants violated the U.S. Constitution for Excessive Force & Due Process and Deliberate Indifference. It also alleges that SCDPS, SCHP, the city of Myrtle Beach, and MBPD committed negligence and gross negligence in accordance with the South Carolina Tort Claims Act.
