Non-Binary Individual Gets $35K After NYPD Tasing
Police allegedly assaulted Danée Sergeant after they criticized authorities
BY TAT BELLAMY-WALKER
A Black non-binary individual
has reached a
$35,000 settlement after
they were allegedly
tased in the crotch by NYPD offi -
cers after their birthday party.
The settlement comes nearly two
years after Danée Sergeant, who is
a community activist and mental
health advocate, said they were accosted
on the street by NYPD offi
cers Erica Rivera and Toni Burke
after allegedly criticizing the department’s
questioning of Black
people outside of a bar, according
to a 10-page complaint fi led in the
US District Court for the Southern
District of New York. The lawsuit
highlights multiple allegations,
including that cops used excessive
force, issued a false arrest,
fabricated evidence, and violated
Sergeant’s civil rights. Lawyers at
Cohen and Green P.L.L.C are handling
the lawsuit.
“This is how the New York City
Police Department behaves; they
are constantly on a rage-driven
power trip,” said Sergeant’s lawyer,
J. Remy Green, who explained
that similar incidents often arise
when people speak out against the
NYPD. Green cited another incident
last month when David Crowell,
a 29-year-old Black man, was
shocked in the back after he yelled
expletives at the police.
“Individual members of the department
— whenever they feel
their authority is challenged in
any way — often react with violence,”
Green said.
In the fall of 2019, Sergeant was
celebrating their birthday on Manhattan’s
Lower East Side. That
morning, Sergeant criticized a
group of police offi cers for questioning
people of color on the street.
“Nah. Let them protect the white
people, that’s what they’re there
for… Y’all go protect the white people,”
Sergeant said, according to
court documents.
Body camera footage of the incident,
which was reviewed by Gay
City News, showed Sergeant put
their hand out but did not touch
Danée Sergeant is getting $35,000 after they were tased by the NYPD.
the offi cer. NYPD Offi cer Erica
Rivera then said, “Don’t put your
hand out at me!”
“I didn’t touch you,” Sergeant
told the offi cer.
“Alright, just keep f****** walking,
bro,” Offi cer Rivera said.
“Don’t talk to me like that,” Sergeant
responded.
“Put your hand down. Put your
hand down,” Offi cer Rivera said.
“They up! They up b**ch,” Sergeant
said, as they stretched their
hands up into the air.
The video shows the confrontation
escalating when offi cers Rivera
and Burke yanked Sergeant’s
sweatshirt, which caused Sergeant
to choke.
“I didn’t do nothing!” Sergeant
DANÉE SERGEANT
yelled, according to the footage.
Then, an unnamed individual in
the background says, “They didn’t
do nothing! chill.”
Pedestrians were seen recording
the incident on their cellphones,
and then the group screamed,
“No! No! No!” as offi cers grappled
Sergeant’s body. At that point, offi -
cers pulled out a taser and zapped
Sergeant’s groin, according to the
video and court papers. The shock
caused Sergeant to begin fl ailing
on the ground and shrieking in
pain, video footage shows.
“It is against the training and
guidance from the taser company
to deploy a taser on somebody’s
crotch,” Green said, referring to the
NYPD’s Patrol Guide. “And that’s
LEGAL
what they did to Danée here.”
While the footage shows that offi
cers perceived Sergeant as male,
Green said they were misgendered
and identifi ed as female in the paperwork.
Green said it is unclear whether
the alleged assault was fueled by
gender-related bias.
“I cannot say for certain whether
that’s bad training in general, or
that’s gender motivated, or something
else entirely,” Green said.
“In this case, it’s hard to separate
what might be some kind of gender
malice from the general rage and
malice that comes with retaliating
against Danée for questioning why
the police were only questioning
Black people outside of a bar.”
Sergeant was subsequently put
in handcuffs and placed in a cop
car.
Per the lawsuit, Sergeant was
detained and taken to a hospital to
remove the taser prongs. However,
offi cials allegedly failed to provide
them with “any means of covering
the puncture wounds,” and they
were tossed into a dirty overnight
cell with open lacerations, court
documents said. Sergeant was then
arraigned on criminal charges,
which cited false allegations from
NYPD Offi cer Rivera, according to
the lawsuit. Sergeant was accused
of yelling at the offi cer and refusing
her orders, the suit notes.
“Defendant Rivera forwarded
these false allegations or caused
the allegations to be forwarded to
the New York County District Attorney’s
Offi ce despite the false nature
of the allegations,” the lawsuit
said. “At no time did defendants
have probable cause to seize, detain
or arrest the plaintiff, nor to
use any force on plaintiff, nor was
it reasonable for the defendants to
believe that such cause existed.”
Sergeant’s criticism of the police,
which sparked the alleged assault,
is protected under the US Constitution.
The charges against Sergeant
were later dismissed.
The NYPD and the New York
City Law Department did not respond
to requests for comment as
of press time.
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