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Mom Claims Cops Beat Her In Subway After She Gave Birth At Hospital
By
Ben Yakas
Published May 21, 2015
Modified May 21, 2015
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By
Ben Yakas
Published May 21, 2015
Modified May 21, 2015
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A mother of three claims that she was assaulted by an NYPD officer in front of her kids as she was on her way home from the hospital having just given birth.
Natisha Sessoms, 38, tells the Daily News that the incident happened on January 14th, 2014, a day after she had given birth at Harlem Hospital. She headed down to the 135th Street subway station with her newborn and her older children, ages 14 and 7. After she swiped through the turnstile, Sessoms says she opened the gate to let the baby in the stroller onto the platform.
According to Sessoms, that's when Officer Endora Shropshire wrongly accused her of turnstile jumping. The two got into a confrontation which escalated when "cops took Sessoms down by a 'leg whip,' pressed her face against the ground and kicked her in the ribs." All of this happened in full view of her kids.
"I felt like I was being raped in front of my children," Sessoms told the News. "Like we were helpless." She added that she and her children all saw therapists after the incident, and she moved her family from the Bronx to Newark to avoid the NYPD.
She was initially charged with turnstile jumping, but that was dismissed. She is now seeking unspecified damages.
Tagged
beating
cops
lawsuit
Natisha Sessoms
nypd
turnstile jumping
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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