Attending a Protest Action? This is How You are Protected Against Police Brutality.

If you’re attending a significantly large protest action, you can expect the police to be there to ensure that the event proceeds in a civilized manner. Unfortunately that may not always be the case. Although many of New York’s finest are committed to serve and protect its people, there are always those who, for whatever reason, resort to brutality.

Police brutality can cause severe damage ranging from physical injury to depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. These effects can be long-lasting and can affect your ability to work and earn an income. In order to sue a police department or officer for personal injury, you will have to be able to prove that the police officer crossed the line between reasonable force and excessive force. This counts for events before, during or after an arrest. Luckily, with camera phones, it is easy to collect evidence of police brutality, and if you or a friend happened to have caught the incident on camera, you have enough evidence to file a complaint against the officer or the police department. If you can prove that the officer acted in a way that no reasonable officer would have in the same situation, you are within your rights to contact a civil or personal injury lawyer to help build your case.

Lawsuits against the 10 cities with the largest police departments in 2014 amounted to $248.7 million in settlements.  Total settlement amounts for these cities have increased with 48% in the last four years. This includes beatings, shootings, and wrongful arrests; all of which can happen during a protest action. The facts around police misconduct are quite disheartening and to make it worse, it is the city of New York that has to pay for the settlement, and not the offending officer.

If you have suffered personal injuries due to police brutality or misconduct of a police officer, contact Linden Law’s experienced New York City Civil Rights Lawyers for a free evaluation of your case. Call us at (212) 804-8440 or visit us at 1500 Broadway Suite 903 in New York City.