Class action lawsuit filed over Fort Lauderdale police response to 2020 protests – NBC 6 South Florida

Four years after a protest against the murder of George Floyd, lawyers have filed a class action lawsuit in federal court against the city of Fort Lauderdale and the Fort Lauderdale Police Department.

The lawsuit alleges that protesters’ civil rights were violated when police sprayed tear gas and used rubber bullets into the crowd without warning on May 31, 2020.

In this incident, LaToya Ratlieff was shot in the face with a rubber bullet, suffering a fractured eye socket, nerve damage, and a laceration on her forehead.

“It’s something that – and I’m sorry to hold my breath a little bit now – I play through it a lot, and even when I come here, I don’t hang out in this area as much anymore. It’s just something that has shaped my life in a different way,” Ratlieff said at a news conference Monday.

In 2022, she filed a lawsuit in federal court accusing the officer and the agency of violating her civil rights.

Julia Bagg

Now more people who were there that day are coming forward and joining a newly filed class action lawsuit.

The lawsuit alleges that the protesters’ rights have been violated, including free speech, the right to assemble, and protection from unreasonable searches and seizures.

“We helped her into a stranger’s car and eventually helped get her to the hospital,” Mike Gabelus said.

Gabelus was one of the people who helped Ratlieff after her injury.

“We were there to protest peacefully and were tear-gassed without warning and forced to leave,” Gabelus said.

Jayanna Jackson was also tear-gassed that day.

“I was tear gassed, I was scared. As a community we need to stick together so this doesn’t happen again,” Jackson said.

There are currently three plaintiffs joining the lawsuit, but lawyers say more people could join the lawsuit.

Ratlieff’s lawyers had previously questioned whether the police’s actions were justified. In May, the lawyers released a video that they said showed the protesters did not jump on a police car when an officer made a 911 call.

The woman who was shot with a rubber bullet by a Fort Lauderdale police officer during a protest last year is speaking out after the officer who fired the shot was cleared of any wrongdoing by his department.

“If you were forced to leave the demonstration because of tear gas and rubber bullets, your rights were violated. If you suffered abuse from the Fort Lauderdale police that day, your rights were violated,” Ratlieff said.

Ratlieff says she hopes this new lawsuit will encourage others to speak out.

“Without protests, we would not be where we are today. Without people standing up and saying that something is not right. And if people fail to say that something is not right, to stand up against something that is not right, where do we stand as a country and what do we say to society?” said Ratlieff.

In 2021, the detective who fired the rubber bullet that hit Ratlieff was acquitted of any wrongdoing.

NBC6 reached out to the city of Fort Lauderdale and the police department. A police department spokesperson said they do not comment on ongoing litigation.