Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
NJ woman mistakenly jailed for 2 weeks can’t sue U.S. marshals
By
Matt Katz
Published Aug 31, 2024
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Mario Tama/Getty Images
By
Matt Katz
Published Aug 31, 2024
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
A New Jersey woman who spent two weeks in jail in 2019 in a case of mistaken identity cannot sue the U.S. marshals who arrested her, a federal appellate court panel has ruled.
Even though the officers arrested the wrong Judith Maureen Henry — and sent her to the Essex County jail in Newark before she was finally released — the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a lower court ruling to say that the officers' actions were constitutionally valid because they were executing a lawful warrant. Therefore, the judges said, the marshals are entitled to the legal protection of qualified immunity, which shields officers from actions taken in the course of enforcing the law.
The judges also rejected the claims by Henry, who is Black, that bias against her race and lower-economic status led to her arrest. Writing for the court, Judge Thomas L. Ambro said: “But we need not accept this bare conclusion, and she offers no other allegations to support it.”
The woman whom the authorities were actually looking for had absconded from parole in Pennsylvania 26 years earlier, prompting the warrant for her arrest.
Tagged
new jersey
Matt Katz
Matt Katz is a former WNYC & Gothamist reporter.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Man shot and killed on Midtown subway platform Saturday afternoon, NYPD says
Police said they're searching for a person of interest.
By
Ryan Kost
and
Elizabeth Kim
Published Oct 17, 2026 at 1:16 p.m. ET
Modified Oct 17, 2026 at 4:10 p.m. ET
Have you seen this Yorkie? NYPD looking for adorable pup dognapped from her Queens home
Suspects were driving a Subaru Forester, police said.
By
Ryan Kost
News
Have you seen this Yorkie? NYPD looking for adorable pup dognapped from her Queens home
Suspects were driving a Subaru Forester, police said.
By
Ryan Kost
Being reigning champions is weird for Knicks fans, but we could get used to this.
By
Catalina Gonella
Tompkins Square Park is getting a makeover. Some say it's too much.
By
Willow Higgins
Deer are all over New Jersey roads looking for sex, state officials warn
By
Rosemary Misdary
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .