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HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (AP) — Federal prosecutors in the case of an Alabama police officer accused of using excessive force on an Indian man are looking to block the officer's colleagues from testifying if a retrial is held. Prosecutors filed a motion Tuesday to exclude testimony from Madison police officers who don't have firsthand knowledge of the February encounter between officer Eric Parker and 58-year-old Sureshbhai Patel. Parker, who was recorded slamming Patel to the ground during a suspicious person investigation, has said Patel resisted officers and pulled away during a pat down. Parker swept one of his legs in front of Patel's to take the man to the ground while his hands were behind his back, prosecutors have said. Patel was seriously injured in the fall. Patel has said through an interpreter that he doesn't speak English and didn't resist officers. Parker has denied using any specific maneuver to take Patel down and testified that he slipped while he tried subduing the man. During Parker's previous trials, several officers and field training coordinators who had seen video of the confrontation testified as to whether Parker violated any guidelines. Prosecutors wrote that their opinions were based simply on viewing the video, which the jury could do without their opinions. Parker's two previous trials ended in hung juries. Judge Madeline Haikala has yet to rule on a motion for acquittal filed by Parker's attorney, Robert Tuten. In a response Wednesday, prosecutors argued Parker should not be acquitted because evidence shows the use of force was objectively unreasonable considering Patel was initially compliant. Patel said five times that he doesn't speak English and didn't present an immediate threat to officers, prosecutors wrote. Prosecutors also said Parker acted willfully because he knew he was using force on someone who couldn't understand him, he used a move to control Patel that wasn't taught at the police academy, and he waited until long after the encounter to say that he slipped. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Posey has said one of the primary difficulties in prosecuting law enforcement in civil rights cases is proving that an officer knew he or she was acting unlawfully. Tuten has called the case an unfortunate escalation of police tactics, but has said Parker is not guilty of a crime. Tuten has said Parker couldn't take claims that Patel didn't understand English at face value during the encounter.

Lawyers look to block testimony in police-Indian man case