A federal investigation into a complaint of police brutality in Auburn has been closed.

The case began with a teenager who was arrested outside Auburn City Hall in August 2004.

City police officer Stephan McLoughlin had said Richard Picciano, who was 16 at the time, resisted arrest after being told he couldn't ride a skateboard in that area and that pepper spray and a physical struggle were needed to take him into custody.

The boy's mother, Mary Lou Picciano, later complained that her son had been falsely arrested and falsely detained. Picciano filed a notice of claim against the city in 2004 alleging that her son had been “unreasonably and unnecessarily assaulted and battered” by a city police officer. That claim later expired.

Picciano later filed a complaint with the FBI and federal agents first contacted the Auburn Police Department in 2006 about its investigation.

Auburn Police Department Chief Gary Giannotta said Wednesday that his office recently received a letter from the FBI in Washington, D.C., informing him that the department has been cleared of any federal civil rights violations.

“They conducted a full investigation, and they cleared us,” Giannotta said.

Richard Picciano is currently suing McLoughlin in federal court, seeking punitive monetary damages as well as recovery of his costs and attorney fees. His suit alleges that he had not been riding a skateboard, simply sitting with one foot on it, and that when he was arrested he sustained injuries, temporary blindness and bruises and scrapes.

The suit argues that Picciano's alleged offense was minor, that he posed no threat to McLoughlin or others, and that he did not resist arrest or attempt to flee.

The case, filed in July 2007, is awaiting a trial date.

Since her son's arrest, Mary Lou Picciano has attended dozens of city council meetings, arguing publicly that the police department abused its powers and challenging officers to take lie detector tests.