A woman has filed a lawsuit against the City of New York and several police officers, alleging civil rights violations, including false arrest and excessive force.
The case arises from an incident on September 17, 2022, when the plaintiff claims she was arrested by Police Officer John Doe #1 based on charges signed by Officer James Burns. According to the complaint, she went to the 120th Police Precinct to report a crime but was instead arrested for allegedly violating an Order of Protection (OOP). The plaintiff alleges she experienced a panic attack upon seeing Officer Burns, who she claims had previously threatened her with a firearm. She further alleges that during her detention, she was physically assaulted and suffered emotional distress at the hands of Officers Anthony Robles, Tiana Guglielmo, and others.
The plaintiff states that the charges against her were later dismissed. She claims the officers’ actions caused physical injuries, disability, reputational harm, loss of her career as a nurse practitioner, and emotional distress. The complaint brings several causes of action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, including false arrest, equal protection violations, excessive force, conspiracy to violate civil rights, Monell liability against the City of New York for alleged training and supervision failures, supervisory liability, and failure to intervene.
The plaintiff seeks compensatory damages, punitive damages against individual defendants, attorney’s fees under 42 U.S.C. § 1988, and other relief deemed appropriate by the court.
The plaintiff is represented by Christopher J. Cassar of The Cassar Law Firm P.C. The case was filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York under case ID 1:25-cv-05196.