Interactive 3D Model Redirects Case Focus
In a contentious Arizona civil rights trial, Chicago attorney Tom Kayes faced a case in which the physical evidence told a different story than the one advanced by law enforcement.
Kayes, of Loevy + Loevy, has built a career taking on difficult civil rights cases, including matters involving police brutality, wrongful convictions, sexual harassment, and prisoner rights. In this case, he represented a plaintiff who had been shot with “bean bag” rounds during a chaotic encounter with unmarked police officers in unmarked vehicles. According to police, the plaintiff had attempted to flee during what began as a traffic stop. But as the evidence developed, that narrative began to fracture.
The scene itself was complex. Officers swarmed the plaintiff’s car, surrounding him with unmarked trucks and SUVs. Multiple officers had different sight lines. Lines of fire, vehicle positions, and the plaintiff’s exact location at the time of the shooting all became critical. Kayes came to Focus Graphics not simply for a courtroom exhibit, but for help understanding the mechanics of what happened.
Focus Graphics built an interactive 3D model of the shooting scene, allowing Kayes to examine the case from every meaningful angle. Relying on scene photographs, Focus Graphics recreated the half-dozen or so vehicles involved and put them in exactly the right positions. The model relied on deposition testimony to place the shooting officer, precisely modeling his height and even the model of the shotgun he fired. The model placed the plaintiff in two positions. The one the plaintiff claimed he was in when he was shot, and the very different one the police claimed.
The model made the truth obvious. The police story could not be true because, from where the shooter was standing, he could not possibly have shot the part of the plaintiff’s body that was hit. Only the plaintiff’s version of events fit the facts. The model made that clear. It helped redirect the case’s focus away from unsupported allegations and towards the physical evidence. Most importantly, it helped Kayes prove the officer’s fault objectively through a long and difficult litigation process.
For a case built on disputed perception, Focus Graphics gave the trial team a tool grounded in geometry, perspective, and evidence. The interactive model did more than illustrate the scene. It helped reveal the truth inside it.
“Focus Graphics helped me understand this case in a way that no stack of reports or photographs could. The interactive 3D model was amazing. It taught us how to explain, in plain objective terms, that the officer had to be wrong. It became a critical tool for framing the case and staying focused on the facts throughout a long and contentious litigation process.”
Tom Kayes
Esq., Chicago, IL
Loevy + Loevy
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