Idaho man files suit, asks for at least $750K after former Boise officer lied under oath
A Boise man who claims that he was wrongfully charged and that a police officer lied under oath in his case filed a complaint in federal court on Thursday, asking the county and city for damages.
Matthew Lee’s complaint will start lawsuit proceedings and it names the city of Boise; Ada County; former Boise Police Department officer Kayse Stone and her husband, Zane Stone; and Ada County deputy Terry Lakey.
The Idaho Statesman initially reported on this case in 2019, after prosecutors were forced to notify dozens of defendants that Kayse Stone might have lied under oath, casting potential doubt on her testimony in their cases.
Lee’s complaint alleges that in April 2018, Kayse and Zane Stone reported “numerous false allegations” against him. He alleges that Kayse Stone then contacted Lakey, who wrote a narrative accusing Lee of stalking the Stones.
Lee claims that Lakey did this before conducting an investigation.
On April 19, 2018, Lee was arrested and booked into jail on a charge of second-degree stalking. After months of disputing the charge and hiring a private attorney, Lee’s charge was dismissed by prosecutors on Sept. 27, 2018.
Lee filed a complaint with BPD internal affairs and Kayse Stone’s employment with BPD ended. On May 16, 2019, the department’s internal investigation “sustained findings” against Stone regarding violation of departmental policies, including testifying truthfully in Lee’s child custody hearing.
It’s unclear whether Stone was fired or resigned, but her last day was June 5, 2019.
Lee’s complaint claims, among other things, that he was deprived of his constitutional rights, was unlawfully arrested and prosecuted, and suffered traumatic and humiliating anguish.
He asks for damages in the amount of no less than $750,000.
As of Friday, none of the defendants in the case had filed responses to the complaint in federal court.
“I was wrongfully arrested without any investigation,” Lee told the Statesman on Friday. “Two officers, from two separate law agencies, blatantly abused their power and performed a shoddy investigation using noncredible accusations without any evidence.”
Lee said he was treated like a criminal and lost time with his daughter over the situation.
“My name and reputation has been dragged through the mud due to the handling of this case in all aspects,” Lee said. “My civil rights were violated because of lies and incompetency.”
When asked for comment Friday, the city of Boise said it “is unable to comment on pending matters.” Ada County did not respond to a request for comment.
