Lawsuit Claims Port Authority Bathroom Arrests Target Gay Men
- By
- Carlos Santoscoy
- | March 29, 2017
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.