Video: Woman files $11.3M brutality suit against Police after knocked unconscious by an officer

Video: Woman files $11.3M brutality suit against Police Department after knocked unconscious by an officer

www.liveleak.com

May 31 2008 Yonkers,
A 44-year-old home health aide has filed a $11.3 million federal civil rights lawsuit against Yonkers police, claiming she was knocked unconscious by an officer who slammed her to the ground after a restaurant melee.

The takedown, captured on surveillance video at La Fonda restaurant on March 3, 2007, left Irma Marquez of Yonkers hospitalized with a fractured jaw, concussion, two black eyes and facial lacerations along with other bruising, according to her lawyers.

She was accosted by police when she leaned over to get a better view of the medical assistance being provided to her niece, who had been struck by someone else at the restaurant, the lawyers claim in a complaint filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court against 10 Yonkers police officers, the Police Department and the city.

(visit the link for the full news article)



[edit on 1-6-2008 by SystemiK]

It seems like we are seeing more and more of these incidents where the cops end up attacking the very victims they are supposed to be protecting.

In the absence of the video tape, I am sure this case would have been swept under the rug. What the hell is going on with the police these days?

www.liveleak.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

he didn't just put her to the ground he did a WWF body slam on her.
i don't care who you are that would do some serious damage and that poor girl is lucky that is all that happened to her "being knocked out " ...

just my opinion - but i think she is drunk - look @ her movments prior to the incident

Originally posted by ironman433
he didn't just put her to the ground he did a WWF body slam on her.

Its WWE man WWE..

Well this thing happens all the time.. There is a reason for it.. we need to learn to fear these people....

Thefore as long as there is no cam present they can do whatever tf they want and say otherwise.

This is sad. Granted you can tell that this woman was getting irate but there was no reason to slam her down like that.

I am becoming more and more wary of the police these days. I think the more tensions and vilolence rise in the community the more violent the police will get. I liken this situation to a pressure cooker...it's gonna blow, but it's gonna get worse before it gets better. If it ever does get better.

i'm thickheaded sometimes too ,, WWE is that better .
yes drunk or not she wasn't combative and even if she was that was not a text book police move that's a WWE move and could easily kill or permanently damage one's brain hitting the ground so hard .
the more camera's that are installed around the country the more we will all be introduced to the way it really is here in this country.

hmmm,By my count there are 6 SS officers in the room and all 6 of them together were unable to restrain this militant terrorist.So naturally she needed to be lifted off the ground and body slammed ala Hulk Hogan?......I hope she gets every damn penny.

It was excessive force based on the number of cops in teh room. But at the same time it does look like she was being comabitive (when she staggers back she bumps into the cop, he pushes her off lightly and she pushes him back).

The force was excessive, obviously. But there is NO audio and we have no idea how long she was mouthing off and being obnoxious before it got to this extent.

Watch some of the "taser" videos on youtube. It is amazing to see women (typically much like the woman in this film) mouth off to cops, and even when the cops tell them a few times "I will tase you" they just keep going! www.youtube.com...

Yes it was excessive force, but 11 million? She assumes part of the responsibility.

reply to post by kleverone


I tend to agree with you. For a long time I've managed to convince myself that these incidents were not becoming more prevalent so much as it was just a result of more cameras out there.

But lately I feel that they ARE getting more violent, and the frequency with which we hear of this is growing dramatically. It seems that they are much quicker to use force and the measure of the force they are using is increasingly violent in nature. At times you can literally feel the rage coming from the police. I'm not sure what they have to be so pissed off about but this undertone of rage is unmistakable.

I also see this trend with people in general though, perhaps our society is building up to a big bang. As tensions rise we may be getting closer to the "boiling point".

just like in another thread here i must argue the mouthing off thing . mouthing off and being obnoxious is not a crime or a justification for brutality of anyone , male or female .
it's interesting how the cop who was bumped into and pushed back by the woman reacted in a proper manner and the one who was the offender of the brutality wasn't touched at all .
if that were my wife or mother who got slammed that cop would be best off hiding for the rest of his life because i am a firm believer no violence towards women . that is not a fair fight in my eyes and no woman drunk or not doesn't deserve to be beaten by a man .

Originally posted by SystemiK
But lately I feel that they ARE getting more violent, and the frequency with which we hear of this is growing dramatically. It seems that they are much quicker to use force and the measure of the force they are using is increasingly violent in nature. At times you can literally feel the rage coming from the police. I'm not sure what they have to be so pissed off about but this undertone of rage is unmistakable.

No doubt a lot of it does have to do with all the cameras that are popping up. On the otherhand our society in general is becoming more violent, and the trust level with regard to other humans is eroding. I am sure being a cop 50 years ago was quite a different experience in many areas of the country.

They have a rough job, I surely would not want to do it. They deal with bad behavior and really messed up individuals all day long. That is going to have an affect, even if they were normal when they started their careers. And yes I have encountered some very rude cops, there was no cause for their rudeness (traffic ticket type stuff) as I am always super nice to them in the hope I can talk my way out of it.

I have sympathy for them. Our society in general is having more and more issues, and the cops take the brunt of it. They are on the front lines and see more each day than the rest of us can imagine.

While the handling is quite brutal and unwarranted, I am equally shocked to see that after she goes down, the other cops doesnt seem to care much or even react.

reply to post by Sonya610



Those are definitely some valid points you make Sonia, they do have to put up with a lot of crap.

As hard as I am on cops in general, in my own experience I've never been mistreated by one. In fact, I can think of at least a dozen times when I could have been charged and yet was left alone. I'm not sure why but cops always seem to go easy on me.

Still, I worry when I see abuses like these happening. Videos like these are the great equalizer that keeps cops in line. For every one of these cases a number of cops are reminded that there are consequences for abusing power.

So , let me get this straight;
1. An obviously drunk woman is kneeling over her daughter so closely that it makes it hard for the paramedics to do their job.

2. A police officer gently pushes her back a little bit in order to let said paramedics do their job. She could still talk to and easily see her daughter. They didn't tell her to leave or try to restrain her at that time.

3. For no reason, that obviously drunk woman in a bar starts to hit another police officer police officer multiple times.

4. Police officer does what he needs to do in order to get woman to stop assaulting him for no reason in a crowded bar.

5. Woman sues for millions because she was stupid enough to try to fight the cops, again for no reason.


Thats what the video shows. I hope she loses. It's called "escalation of force". The woman was being violent with the police officer and breaking the law while putting her, her daughter and other officers in danger. The officer had to respond with more force than she was using to stop her.


edited for spelling.



[edit on 1-6-2008 by Tiloke]

When will people learn ? Even here in the UK the Police are NOT on our side. They do not protect us, they enforce the rules against us at all times.

They are seperate and very self contained and will pull tight against any outsider and use as much force as they can get away with to make you feel 'inferior'.


$ 11 million ? good for her.

reply to post by Tiloke

3. For no reason, that obviously drunk woman in a bar starts to hit another police officer police officer multiple times.

Am I watching a different video than you?

I see a woman shoved by one cop into another cop, who then shoves her back the other way. After a bit of a back and forth, a cop approaches her from the front, and breaks her jaw with the floor.

It makes no difference wether or not this woman was drunk. In fact, the cops should have known better than to be playing drunken-pinball with the woman.

Typical bully tactics. One bully shoves someone into another bully who then yells, "hey don't touch me." Nice to see that we hire people to run around with guns that have the mentality of a sixth-grader.

Originally posted by jackintheboxIt makes no difference wether or not this woman was drunk. In fact, the cops should have known better than to be playing drunken-pinball with the woman.

Nice avatar.

That having been said, there is NO Audio! Humans (even cops) are subject to emotion. Maybe it is a flaw, it is still reality. I do suspect the audio would have shed a new light on this situation.

People need to have common sense. Do NOT provoke cops. Have you provoked them clown? Did it turn out bad? Please share.

reply to post by Sonya610



I agree with Jackinthebox. It seems we are seeing different videos. She did not hit anyone multiple times, she elbowed a cop as he was attempting to grab at her and bumped into another one.

What is particularly disturbing is how the "boys" will back each other to no end despite visual evidence of what happened, even completely distorting the story.

An equally disturbing issue is how this happens time and time again. It is like the Catholic Preists paying people off and not making any changes.

Being drunk does not mean you are a piece of trash and deserve to be treated that way. Often times it seems that the officers just treat citizens who pay thier wage like the enemy.

Sure, cops have a tough job, that doesn't mean they should be allowed to abuse thier power and exihibit abusive power and control issues on the people.

They could try a little courtesy and they may find people to be more responsive. It is very usual that they provoke people to bad behavior and then they are very mean and brutal.

What I find astonishing is the general attitude of Law enforcement. It's a "we /they" mentality. Even though it's thru tax dollars that the LE people are paid. What ever happened to "Protect and Serve?" That slogan is still emblazoned on the patrol cars around here.

[edit on 1-6-2008 by whaaa]