Federal Civil Rights Class Action May Proceed Agai

NEW YORK, March 07, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Wolf Haldenstein Adler Freeman & Herz LLP and Stecklow & Thompson are pleased to announce the entry of an Order sustaining claims against the City of New York for false arrests and failing to train law enforcement officers on the rights of those exercising free speech.  The claims stem from the protests surrounding the first anniversary of Occupy Wall Street in 2012 during the prior mayoral administration.  The Order was entered by Judge Analisa Torres of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York in Packard v. City of New York , No. 15 Civ. 7130(AT). 

In honor of the one year anniversary of the Occupy Wall Street protests, a movement to remind Americans of massive nationwide economic inequality, hundreds assembled in downtown Manhattan. Those peacefully assembled chose to exercise their First Amendment right to freedom of speech which resulted in 220 of them being unlawfully arrested. Some of those unlawfully arrested were then detained for up to 36 hours before they were released. The majority of the arrests culminated in dismissals, ACD’s or declined prosecutions. In addition to the named plaintiffs identified in the Complaint , the action is brought on behalf of a class consisting of all persons who were wrongfully arrested and charged with at least one count of disorderly conduct on September 15, 16 or 17, 2012.

The Order : (1) sustained claims that the City’s failure “to train police officers in First Amendment principles resulted in the misapplication of the disorderly conduct statute and directly caused the unlawful arrest of the Plaintiffs in violation of their First Amendment rights”; and (2) sustained Plaintiffs’ claims of unlawful arrest against the City.  The Order is a significant win for Plaintiffs as they have now cleared a substantial roadblock in the litigation allowing the action to proceed after having being filed in the fall of 2015.

The Right Reverend George Packard, a retired United States army officer, a retired Bishop of the Episcopal Church and one of the named plaintiffs, said,  “When police officers are not trained, and cannot conceive of variations of free speech, the result is what happened on September 17 ^th . A peaceful procession was stopped, blocked, and detained. Law enforcement then arrested demonstrators even though we had yielded to other sidewalk pedestrians’ right of way while maintaining our own intention of protest. The questions persist to this day: Why couldn’t protesters proceed down the street? Was the police plan for that day so inflexible as to create occasions for arrest?”

Wylie Stecklow, a partner at Stecklow & Thompson and Chair of the Federal Bar Association Section of Civil Rights remarked, “The City of New York has been on notice that NYPD officers do not understand the proper standards for policing sidewalk protest since before the 2004 RNC. On behalf of the more than 200 individuals unlawfully arrested on and around September 17, 2012, I look forward to our day in Court and to an updated training program so NYPD officers will have the correct knowledge to properly police sidewalk protest in New York City.”

Janine Pollack, a partner of Wolf Haldenstein added, “Plaintiffs, who were merely exercising  their First Amendment right to freedom of speech and assembly, are very pleased with this thoughtful and well-reasoned decision.  Those who were falsely arrested are prepared to move forward in the litigation to protect the right of all people to peaceably protest and exercise their First Amendment rights without fear of false arrest or retaliation.”

Founded in 1888, Wolf Haldenstein has extensive experience in the prosecution of complex class actions in state and federal trial and appellate courts across the country.  The firm’s attorneys have expertise in various practice areas, including federal civil rights litigation.  Wolf Haldenstein’s reputation and expertise in class litigation has been repeatedly recognized by the courts, which have appointed it to major positions in complex multi-district and consolidated litigations. Follow Wolf Haldenstein on Facebook and Twitter .

Stecklow & Thompson is a general practice law firm in New York City, comprised entirely of attorneys dedicated to Civil Rights litigation.  The firm was founded by Wylie M. Stecklow in 1995 as WylieLaw to help people protect their Constitutional and legal rights. David Thompson joined as partner in 2012, and WylieLaw became Stecklow & Thompson. More information about Stecklow & Thompson can be found on Facebook .

Contacts: Janine L. Pollack, Esq. (212) 545-4600 Pollack@whafh.com Wylie M. Stecklow, Esq (212) 566-8000 Wylie@SCTLaw.NYC