The suit drew coverage from the Washington Post. Charges against her for speeding and resisting arrest were dismissed. (Hicks, Samantha), Case ASSIGNED to JUDGE WILLIAM L. OSTEEN, JR and MAG/JUDGE JOI ELIZABETH PEAKE. Some people are upset at the way iPhones charge. She was also unable to work for eight months following the injuries she suffered and still primarily uses her right arm to stack bookshelves, as she struggles to raise her left hand over her head. Emancipate NC attorney Ian Mance is representing Bottom in a lawsuit seeking damages for excessive force, co-counseling with the Civil Clinic at North Carolina Central University School of Law. Have a tip or story idea? WBTV reported the city of Salisbury, North Carolina provided a statement about the case: The Salisbury Police Department strives for positive interactions with our residents and visitors, including in cases where we may suspect criminal activity. When they grabbed me and threw me to the ground, thats when the real terror struck me that Im going to die.. Stephanie Bottom, then 66, was driving her car to Raleigh for her great aunts funeral on 30 May, 2019 when, Salisbury police and Rowan County sheriff Bottom, an Atlanta librarian and grandmother of five, was driving to North Carolina for a relatives funeral when police stopped her vehicle after it was going 10 Bottom, who is Black, contended in the lawsuit that the officers from the Salisbury Police Department and Rowan County Sheriffs office used excessive force, in This docket was last retrieved on June 15, 2021. She says when she finally realized she was being pursued by police, it took awhile for her to find a safe placeto pull over. Business class plane passenger refuses to give up his seat so a man could sit next to his wife on her birthday - selfish or fair enough? Farm Heroes Saga, the #4 Game on iTunes. Stephanie Bottom was driving on May 30, 2019, along Interstate 85 from Georgia to North Carolina to attend her great aunts funeral, her attorney Scott Holmes Get a complete background report of Stephanie Austin at LocatePeople with phone, address, email, criminal, court and arrest records. Emailus. May 11, 2021 | Criminal Justice Reform, Emancipate NC News, Policing. PO Box 309 According to the lawsuit, Bottom did not believe she was driving fast and did not think the police were trying to stop her. CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (WTVD) -- A University of North Carolina student used some area knowledge to advance in Jeopardy's High School Reunion Tournament. As she was handcuffed on the side of the road, the officers searched her vehicle and purse without her consent, a warrant, or probable cause which violated Bottoms Fourth Amendment rights, the lawsuit says. I was just driving. Bottom claims the officers refused to get her medical treatment even as she told them she was pain, according to the lawsuit. On Wednesday, April 21, Bottom filed a federal lawsuit against Stephanie Workman, Age 52 Remove Record. The just-released body cam video shows police pulling Stephanie Bottom by her arm and hair from her car and handcuffing heron the side of the highway. She is seeking punitive damages, compensatory damages, attorneys fees and other costs from the state defendantsas well as injunctive and declaratory relief that prohibits similar treatment against citizens in the future based on the idea that the officers actions were in violation of the Fourth Amendments prohibition against unreasonable searches and seizures. Some of those images can be seen immediately below: Bottom alleges the group of officers arrested her unreasonably when they grabbed [her] by her hair and threw her from her Toyota Sequoia to the ground., As a result, the librarian claims, she was seriously injured due to the excessive force of the arrest, which resulted in a tear to her rotator cuff in her shoulder. This injury, according to the lawsuit, required surgery, permanently scarring and limiting the use of [Bottoms] shoulder.. Our complaint alleges these officers had no reason to use any force, much less the level of force they employed. 'Thats good police work, baby,' an officer involved in the stop can be heard saying later on the body camera footage. The force applied by the officers caused Bottoms shoulder to pop, tearing her rotator cuff and causing severe injury, according to the lawsuit. According to the Charlotte Observer, video shows an officer telling Bottom that EMS would look at her approximately 11 minutes after the stop, after which she was taken to a local hospital. Please go to our website under Attorney Information for a list of mediators which must be served on all parties. Bottom informed the outlet that her injuries kept her from working for eight months, resulting in a loss of wages. A black librarian was dragged by her hair and yanked out of her car at a traffic stop in North Carolina, newly released bodycam footage has revealed.Stephanie Bottom, then 66, was driving her car to Raleigh for her great aunts funeral on 30 May, 2019 when, Salisbury police and Rowan County sheriff deputies attempted to pull her over for Stephanie Bottom is suing the police over her arrest in May 2019 which left her with a torn rotator cuff. Updated Once it became clear they wanted her to pull over she was afraid and was looking for a safe place to pull over, Holmes told CNN in an email. Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much It also claims that the officers congratulated one other for their work and an officer identified in the lawsuit as Barkalow is heard bragging about grabbing a "handful of dreads," saying "at that point she earned it.". Police pull Black woman by hair, injure her shoulder in traffic stop. Why didn't you stop?" Benfield, Barkalow, and Bouk placed [Bottom] in handcuffs and secured her at the front of her vehicle prior to commencing their search of [Bottoms] vehicle and purse. 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The lawsuit said she was listening to music loudly in her car at that time and she did not immediately realize she was being pulled over. After the arrest, Bottom claimed she was listening to music loudly in her car and did not realize she was being pulled over, according to the lawsuit, a claim that can be heard in the video. Find Dr. Newby's phone number, address, hospital affiliations and more. 'Breaking Bad' star Bryan Cranston says Trump's Make America Great Again slogan is RACIST and asks 'when was it ever great for the African American? And after that, she claims, it got even worse. (Hicks, Samantha). Download our newest episodes now! Use the links below to access additional information about this case on the US Court's PACER system. According to Bottom, all of the arresting officers were white, In a CBS News article from April 23, Ian Mance is quoted saying Ms. When Bottoms didnt immediately pull over, one of the officers making the traffic stop identified in the lawsuit as Salisbury Police Officer Devin Barkalow made statements recorded by his body camera that Bottom was a f**king retard and a douche bag, according to the body camera footage. A Black woman was allegedly grabbed by the hair and pulled out of her SUV by North Carolina police during a traffic stop in 2019 after she was driving 10 miles per hour over the speed limit and failed to stop for law enforcement, according to a civil lawsuit filed last week. may be available from PACER. She said she also experienced extreme terror. According to WBTV, community members want more from the Salisbury Police and Rowan Sheriff. In the footage, Bottom is seen screaming as Benfield, Barkalow, and Salisbury Police Officer Adam Bouk force her to lay face down on the ground, according to the lawsuit. Officers Barkalow and Bouk picked up by her arms, inflicting additional pain to her shoulder, forced her to stand and put her in the back of a patrol car, according to the lawsuit. The officers also say it could've been a simple traffic stop before putting the onus of the current incident on her. Rowan County Sheriffs Office and Salisbury Police Department must hold the individuals in the video accountable. Stephanie Bottom (AP) RALEIGH, N.C. A federal lawsuit filed by a Georgia librarian says white officers used excessive force on the Black woman during a Why are you doing this to me? asks Bottom, who is from Atlanta. Traveling north on I-85, she eventually noticed the blue lights of a Sheriff Deputys vehicle and began looking for a safe area to pull over, according to her lawsuit filed in federal court on Wednesday. Another angle appears to show an officer grabbing Bottom by her hair when yanking her from the car. It also claims that the officers congratulated one other for their work and an officer identified in the lawsuit as Barkalow is heard bragging about grabbing a "handful of dreads," saying "at that point she earned it.". Find Stephanie Bottoms's phone number, address, and email on Spokeo, the leading online directory for contact information. She later had surgery for the injury, but it did not fully repair the shoulder, according to the lawsuit, and now there is permanent damage. Officers had their sirens on for at least 10 minutes, according to body camera footage that is cited in the lawsuit and was reviewed by CNN. 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Stephanie Bottom was admittedly going 10 miles over the speed limit on May 30, 2019 in North Carolina. According to the lawsuit, the police grabbed the then 66-year-old by her hair, and threw her to the ground resulting in a torn rotator cuff. Eventually, Bottom received medical attention at the scene and was taken to the hospital, the lawsuit says. Once on the ground, officers twisted Bottom's arm behind her back, causing her 'shoulder to 'pop,' tearing her rotator cuff and causing severe injury,' the lawsuit said. Eventually, Bottom received medical attention at the scene and was taken to the hospital, the lawsuit says. Bottom was driving from Atlanta to Raleigh, North Carolina, to attend her aunts funeral. Police officers then approached her with guns drawn and grabbed her by her arm and hair, pulling her out of her car and throwing her onto the ground. 2001-2023 Dante Lee International | All Rights Reserved. WebThe woman, Stephanie Bottom of Atlanta, who is Black, said she was driving to a funeral and posing no threat to the officers when they stopped her on Interstate 85 for driving 80 mph in a 70 mph zone. Emancipate NC Bottom was peaceful at all times, and officers knew they were dealing with an elderly woman, said Ian Mance, a lawyer with EmancipateNC who is representing Bottom, according to CBS News. The fourth officer named in the lawsuit is Rowan County Sheriff Kevin Auten. ', 'Won't somebody think of the fentanyl dealers?' Meanwhile, officers search her car, which Bottom alleges she didn't consent for, Officers are then seen using their force to get Bottom to put her arms behind her back. At one point, she begged for medical attention, as well for an opportunity to call her family. We found 15 records for Stephanie Monroe in Huntersville, Fayetteville and 12 other cities in North Carolina. We've received your submission. She was terrified, according to the lawsuit, as officers shouted at her to exit the vehicle. The actions of officers who abuse their power makes it hard for individuals to trust law enforcement. As officers search the car - which Bottom alleges she did not consent to - one explains that three police cars have been following her for around 10 miles, which Bottom agreed with, as officers explain how she was speeding. Email Address Here. In a statement cited in theGrio, President of the Salisbury-Rowan NAACP chapter Gemale Black succinctly summarized the injustice inflicted on Stephanie Bottom: This week, we watched as a 2019 traffic stop video surfaced of officers from Rowan County Sheriffs Office and Salisbury Police Department using excessive force to arrest Stephanie Bottom, a 68-year-old Black librarian from AtlantaUnprofessional conduct, inappropriate comments, and excessive force use negatively impacts police-citizen relationships. a librarian from Georgia has filed a civil rights lawsuit against police officers over a traffic stop gone awry. WebYou can view 1 entry, complete with personal details, location history, phone numbers, relatives and locations for Stephanie Love. The suit alleges that in his official capacity he "approved and condoned the unlawful behavior.". She appeared in court for the traffic violations, pleaded responsible to failure to heed blue lights, and the other charges against her were dismissed, according to the lawsuit. Docket action in the case was quick, however, and there may not be much of any precedent as a result of the lawsuit. San Francisco's woke public defender is slammed for condemning plans to deport opioid pushers, Do you wish you were taller? "Once it became clear they wanted her to pull over she was afraid and was looking for a safe place to pull over," Holmes told CNN in an email. Discovery Company. When officers approached her car, their firearms were drawn. The force applied by the officers caused Bottom's "shoulder to 'pop,' tearing her rotator cuff and causing severe injury," according to the lawsuit.