WORCESTER, Mass. (WWLP) – In Worcester, eleven people have filed a federal lawsuit saying that they were assaulted by police or wrongfully arrested while peacefully observing a June 2020 protest following the killing of George Floyd.
The lawsuit filed Thursday names the city of Worcester, the former city manager, the chief of police, and more than a dozen officers as defendants. Some of the claims in the lawsuit include the use of unreasonable force by police, false arrest, and malicious prosecution.
One of the plaintiffs alleges that officers punched her, brought her to the ground, and placed a knee on her spine. That plaintiff, along with the ten other plaintiffs, had not done anything illegal.
All of the charges originally pressed against the plaintiffs were dropped due to insufficient evidence. In November, the US Justice Department opened a civil investigation into whether the Worcester Police Department routinely uses excessive force or discriminates against residents based on race or gender. That investigation is ongoing.