A journalist has filed a lawsuit against the City of New York and several NYPD officers, claiming that he was assaulted by law enforcement while documenting a protest.
The lawsuit filed by plaintiff Mouhamad Beydoun names several NYPD officers, including Sgt. Andonios Constantatos and Officer Shingru Wang as defendants. The incident at the heart of this case took place during a rally in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, which is known for its significant Arab and Muslim population. According to the complaint, Beydoun was exercising his constitutional rights by documenting the event when he was suddenly elbowed from behind by an NYPD officer. This unprovoked attack allegedly escalated as officers threw him to the ground, punched him repeatedly, and smashed his camera. Despite identifying himself as a member of the press, Beydoun claims that officers ignored his pleas and continued their assault while hurling derogatory remarks at him.
Beydoun accuses the city and its police department of perpetuating a policy that condones excessive force against peaceful protesters and those documenting such events. He asserts that this behavior is part of a broader pattern aimed at stifling free speech and assembly rights. The complaint references past incidents involving similar tactics by the NYPD, drawing parallels with other cases where peaceful demonstrators were met with violence.
Beydoun is demanding compensatory and punitive damages against individual officers involved in the incident. He also calls for an injunction to prevent further violations of protesters' rights and requests changes to current policies that allegedly enable such misconduct.
The plaintiff is represented by attorney Aymen A. Aboushi of The Aboushi Law Firm PLLC. The case was filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York under Case ID 1:25-cv-02338-BMC and is presided over by Judge Brian M. Cogan.