The host of a cable TV talk show in Washington has sued Rep. Esteban E. Torres (D-Pico Rivera), complaining that the lawmaker had him falsely arrested by Capitol Police for stealing an official document after an interview taping session turned sour.

Jan E. Helfeld, host of a weekly public policy program, is seeking $50,000 in damages and the return of a videotape of the abortive interview that he says a Torres aide confiscated and mostly erased.

The lawsuit, filed Sept. 18 in U.S. District Court, also accuses Torres and the aide, Roderic O. Young, of making a false police report, slander and infliction of emotional distress.