I was on a Federal jury for exactly what you're saying

It was a civil rights case, we found in favor of the plaintiff who was suing the Sheriff's Department. It was our perception that the cop lied about what happened and his superiors, who were there, didn't back him up. He said the guy swung at him, the superiors "didn't see it". Obviously, deadly force wasn't used, but he never should have been arrested in the first place. I'm sure they never thought the guy would sue them. But, the plaintiff said even though the charges were dropped, being arrested had terrible ramifications. We ruled for the maximum amount as per federal rules.