A 37-year-old Black man is asking that a federal court award him nearly $1 million to settle excessive force and racial discrimination allegations against the Allentown Police Department.

Brian Morgan Jr. alleges white officer David M. Howells III used excessive force during his arrest in July 2013 by repeatedly shocking him with a Taser despite already being subdued from the initial shock. Morgan initiated legal proceedings in February and filed an amended complaint on Dec. 19.

Police responded on July 30, 2013, to the 400 block of North Seventh Street in Allentown for reports of a man pointing a gun at another man. Officers arrived to find Morgan showing what would later be determined was a stolen handgun to two other other men, according to records. Authorities said Morgan tucked the gun into his pants, covered it with his shirt and began to walk away.

Court papers filed by Morgan's attorney indicate he tucked the gun into an elastic bandage strapped around his waist.

Howells gave chase and shot Morgan in the back with a Taser, knocking him to the ground and immediately incapacitating him, according to court papers. When he fell, Morgan landed on his chest with the handgun under his body and his arms over his head and to the side, according to the lawsuit.

Morgan alleges Howells administered the shocks for at least three minutes, twice used racial slurs while Morgan lay prone on the ground and administered additional unnecessary shocks. The lawsuit accuses a second police officer of failing to stop Howells, when he arrived. It was only after a third officer arrived that Howells stopped using the Taser and Morgan was handcuffed, according to court records.