PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — Jury deliberations continue today in the civil case of the three Pittsburgh police officers accused in the beating of a former CAPA student in 2010.

Closing arguments wrapped up late Thursday; and after deliberating for a few hours, the jury retired for the night before resuming this morning.

Jordan Miles claims he was stopped by police in Homewood in January of 2010 and beaten without cause. However, the officers say they thought he may have been armed and tried to run.

The jury, which began deliberations late Thursday afternoon, must decide whether the three officers used excessive force when they say they found Miles alongside a home on Tioga Street that wasn’t his, a home they described as being in a high-crime area.

Defense attorney, James Wymard, argued: “It was not excessive force. There was no broken nose. There was no fractured skull. If you wanted to do damage, punch them in the nose.”

But Miles’ attorney, J. Kerrington Lewis, countered: “They came down the street and thought he was a black punk, drug dealing thug. They thought they were going to take him down and they continued to try to take him down.”

The jurors heard nine days of testimony, including from the three officers and from Miles. The jury consists of three women and five men.

No criminal charges were ever filed in the case.

Stay with KDKA for the latest on this developing story.

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Jury Deliberating In Jordan Miles Civil Trial (8/2/12)
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