NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) – A federal judge in New Orleans will decide if two cases alleging police misconduct can proceed.
ACLU of Louisiana’s legal team appeared in federal court Wednesday on behalf of then-18-year-old Bilal Hankins, who, according to the lawsuit, experienced a racially motivated traffic stop and excessive force after he asked for help, looking for a lost dog, from off-duty officers while in his Uptown neighborhood in June 2020.
ACLU of Louisiana legal director Nora Ahmed says the officers filed a motion so the lawsuit wouldn’t go to trial, arguing qualified immunity.
Both parties were questioned by the judge.
“[The judge asked] whether the stop was reasonable, whether these young men were seized, whether there was excessive force used, and there were a lot of questions about who the supervisors were because this is an issue of off-duty officers, working for private details,” Ahmed said.
The officers reportedly were working as patrol officers for the Hurstville Security and Neighborhood Improvement District.
The lawsuit seeks to hold the officers, their Hurstville supervisor and their employers, Orleans Levee District Police Department and the Housing Authority of New Orleans, accountable.
“We are now awaiting a decision on that motion for summary judgement, which ultimately can decide whether our client gets to present his case before a jury or whether the case is closed,” Ahmed said.
“Yesterday the court heard arguments on the Motions for Summary Judgment filed by the defendants. Both sides presented their arguments and answered questions from the judge. The judge took the matter under advisement, and we await the decision of the court,” said a spokesperson for the Hurstville Security and Neighborhood Improvement District.
The ACLU is also representing Frances Tapps, who they say was harassed at her Kenner home by an off-duty Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s deputy in January 2021.
The lawsuit states the deputy, by request of Tapps’ landlord, attempted to forcefully evict Tapps from her home without any legal standing or authorization and that the incident caused her to go into pre-mature labor.
“Today was about whether the landlord who asked the police officer to show up and collect the keys from our client, Ms. Tapps, is responsible for the false imprisonment that then ended up taking place in this case and, of course, the injury that resulted there from which is pre-term labor,” Ahmed explained.
The civil action also points the finger at Jefferson Parish Sheriff Joe Lopinto for alleged negligent hiring, retention and supervision.
We reached out to the parties listed in the lawsuits. A Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s spokesman says they don’t comment on pending litigation, and we did not hear back from the others before airtime.
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