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Man On Crutches Claims Cop Said "I Don't Give A F***" Before Beating Him
By
Ben Yakas
Published Sep 3, 2015
Modified Sep 3, 2015
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By
Ben Yakas
Published Sep 3, 2015
Modified Sep 3, 2015
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A Manhattan man is suing the NYPD after he says officers beat him and kicked his injured leg during a Washington Heights block party last year—and he claims one cop in particular yelled, "I don’t give a f*** about your foot," before the beating.
According to the lawsuit, J-Quan Johnson, 25, was in attendance at the "Love is Love" block party on Aug. 31, 2014 when cops arrived to break up the gathering. Johnson was on crutches at the time because he had stitches in his left ankle and an intravenous PICC line administering antibiotics to his chest as a result of a recent basketball injury. He claims in his lawsuit that he was following instructions to disperse when Officer Dwight Powell allegedly shoved someone into him.
"Why are you being so aggressive?" Johnson says he asked the cop, before asking him to be careful because of his leg. That's when Powell allegedly said, "I don’t give a f*** about your foot"— Johnson talked back, Powell allegedly slapped him in the face, and five officers then pounced on him. You can see video of the aftermath below.
"While the plaintiff was on the ground being handcuffed, one unnamed [cop] stood up, looked around the area and then violently struck the plaintiff with a metal baton on the plaintiff’s left Achilles tendon area," the suit states. Johnson was arrested at the time and charged with assault on a police officer, but the charge was later dismissed.
Johnson’s ankle was severely damaged during the melee: his foot was infected and his tendon was re-ruptured, forcing him to undergo skin grafts and several surgeries to repair it. You can see a very nasty photo of the leg at the Daily News website.
Tagged
beating
cops
crutches
J-Quan Johnson
lawsuit
manhattan
nypd
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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