A lawsuit filed Monday by Winston &
Strawn and the Legal Aid Society claims that Port Authority of New
York and New Jersey police are targeting gay men during bathroom
raids.
The class action lawsuit, filed in
Manhattan federal court, accuses police of engaging in discrimination
by falsely arresting men perceived to be gay at the Port Authority
Bus Terminal.
According
to CBS2, the officers actively engage the men they find in the
bathrooms, then charge them with lewd conduct or exposure.
“The PAPD have continued to make such
targeted arrests knowing or believing that most of those arrested
will ultimately be forced to plead to lesser charges to avoid public
embarrassment and humiliation, costly legal fees, and jail sentences,
as well as reputational and professional harm associated with the
false charge,” the suit states.
“The use of police assets and
resources in this unconstitutional and unconscionable way is
particularly stunning in light of the world in which we live,”
Thomas Patrick Lane, a partner with Winston & Strawn, said.