10Fighting back
Activist: I will sue city over brutal arrest
A LOCAL Black Lives Matter leader plans to sue the city because he says NYPD cops “almost killed him” while they arrested him a peaceful protest.
Walter (Hawk) Newsome was handcuffed at a demonstration against the Trump administration’s immigration ban in Washington Square Park on Feb. 11, according to legal documents.
Manhattan prosecutors dismissed all of the charges against Newsome in September — on the condition that he not get arrested for six months.
“This is about accountability,” Newsome, president of the Greater New York chapter of Black Lives Matter, explained.
“I am bringing this lawsuit to demonstrate, when one is wronged in our society — even by police — that we have the right to damages for what happened to us,” Newsome, 40, said.
His attorney, Sanford Rubenstein said the lawsuit, expected to be filed Monday in Manhattan Supreme Court, “shines a spotlight” on protesters exercising their First Amendment rights to freedom of speech.
“(They) should not be subjected to serious physical injuries at the hands of the police simply because they are exercising that right,” said Rubenstein.
Newsome was facing up to a year on Rikers Island for resisting arrest, obstructing governmental administration and disorderly conduct charges.
“I could’ve been killed as a result of the reckless way that they slammed me on ice and concrete,” said Newsome, adding, “Thank God that I’m not a hashtag and that people are not marching in remembrance of me.”
The Bronx man is seeking an unspecified amount for punitive damages, civil rights violation, emotional distress, false imprisonment, false arrest and other damages.
“We cannot comment on whether these allegations have any merit before a full review of the complaint and the facts of the incident. If a lawsuit is filed, we will respond accordingly,” said Nicholas Paolucci, a city law department spokesman.
Newsome says his experience isn’t stopping him from continuing to promote awareness about police brutality.
“I am working with high school and college students on a youth march taking place on Dec. 2 against police brutality. I will not be deterred,” he said.
Thank God that I’m not a hashtag and that people are not marching in remembrance of me. Hawk Newsome