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Class-action federal civil rights suit filed against Rochester police and city officials alleging racism and excessive force

April 6, 2021. Summarized by summa-bot.

Compression ratio: 18%. 1 min read.

A class-action civil lawsuit filed in federal court on Monday accuses the Rochester, New York, Police Department (RPD) of racist practices and a "pattern and practice of using excessive force."

The plaintiffs include individuals who claim they were subjected to excessive force and/or falsely arrested during protests over the death of Daniel Prude, who died in police custody in March 2020.

According to the lawsuit, an RPD officer "shot DeGuzman in the neck with a pepper ball from approximately five feet away. " A third involved Emily Good, a resident and Legal Observer with the National Lawyers Guild Rochester, who claims she was targeted for "documenting the violent police response to peaceful protesters. " Good also claims RPD officers shot her with pepper balls and exposed her to tear gas, according to the filing.

The plaintiffs also accuse Rochester city officials of being indifferent to the "pervasive problem of racism," citing "more than fifty incidents of RPD officers using excessive force against people of color" and naming 17 people, including Prude, who "were killed as a result of their encounters with the RPD. "

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