Throwing a plastic water bottle in the gutter hard enough to break it won a Los Angeles man headed home with his wife and three kids a trip to the Metropolitan Detention Center.

And swearing at an Albuquerque Aviation Police officer didn't help his case.

Robin C. Coulon was arrested, missed his early morning New Year's Eve flight home and had to post $750 cash bond and hire an attorney to defend him on the charges, which were speedily dismissed.

Coulon, charged with littering and disorderly conduct, has filed a civil rights lawsuit "as a matter of principle," his attorney said.

Meanwhile, the city's lawyers say the man was an experienced traveler who should have understood airport security. They said it was he who was clearly out of line, ignoring police and having a meltdown.

Robin C. Coulon's suit claims violation of his First Amendment right to speech. He was arrested after he swore in exasperation, "You've got to be (expletive) kidding me! This is (expletive) bull (expletive)!" to the officer.

He's also claiming violation of his right to be free from unlawful search and seizure, battery and malicious prosecution by aviation officers Florian Chavez and Eldon Martinez.

The civil rights suit is now in federal court, and a hearing was held last week. The city denies any constitutional violations by police. Coulon's attorney, Matthew Coyte, said both he and his client are outraged at the arrest in front of his kids.

"Lawsuits like this one are extremely important. They are the only way to curb an officer's abuse of the community's trust," he said. "In this instance, it is obvious you cannot arrest a citizen simply to punish his speech. An arrest for littering under these circumstances is far more obscene than my client's use of an expletive."

Coulon's civil suit describes arriving at the airport in the early morning to catch a United Airlines flight to California. Coulon, driving a rental van carrying his luggage, his wife and his children - ages 11, 3 and 1 - stopped at the United entrance on the upper deck. It was cold, and there were no Sky Caps to help.

Coulon's wife and one of his children took some luggage into the airport as Coulon shuttled the rest into the building. The other two children remained in the car.

On the police belt tape, Chavez warns Coulon, "Sir, you can't leave that truck here by itself." Coulon responds, "I'm just gonna drop this and I'm leaving."

Chavez tells Coulon he may tow the truck, resulting in his outraged reaction and use of expletives. When the officer tells him to calm down, Coulon responds "No, I don't need to calm down. You need to stop your (expletive) bull (expletive)." The lawsuit also says at one point, an unidentified officer told Coulon he couldn't leave the children unattended. Coulon called his wife in the terminal and asked her to come and get the children.

Coulon was near the entrance when he started handing items to his wife, including two water bottles. When Chavez told him he had to move the vehicle immediately, the lawsuit says Coulon threw one water bottle to the ground and the other in the trash.

Later, Coulon was with his family at a coffee shop inside the terminal when Chavez again spoke to him. Coulon demanded to see his identification and asked why he was being detained. Martinez, a supervisor was summoned, and Coulon was arrested.

Within a week of the charges being filed, Metropolitan Court Judge Christina Argyres dismissed them without prejudice, although the earlier Metro Court judge who set bail, Edward Benavidez, found probable cause based on the officer's written criminal complaint.

Coulon said in a statement, "I am not a criminal. I am just a father with three small children trying to unload my baggage as quickly and efficiently as possible. Rather than help my situation, the police officer appeared to gain great satisfaction in stopping me. He harassed me until I lost my temper."

Despite the dropped charges, he said, "I will always have an arrest record and my children will always have the memory of their father being led away in handcuffs."

Attorneys defending the officers said it's not so simple.

"Mr. Coulon's reaction to a very simple instruction from a police officer was irrational and threatening," said attorney Jeff Baker, who is defending the police officers in the lawsuit. "He began yelling loudly and threw a water bottle so violently that it exploded in front of a crowd of people."