A woman is suing the Bayonne Police Department and Hudson County Correctional Facility over alleged civil rights violations that she says occurred during and after her arrest in the Peninsula City two years ago.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
The 13-count lawsuit, filed in Hudson County Superior Court yesterday, claims Hasna Alaoui was arrested for undisclosed reason(s) at approximately 9:30 a.m. on August 12th, 2022 and police “placed her in placed her in excessively tight handcuffs.”
“After Plaintiff’s arrest, on August 12, 2022, Plaintiff was transported to the Bayonne Police Department (‘BPD’) precinct, located at 630 Avenue C, Bayonne, NJ 07002, where she continued to complain about the tight handcuffs which Defendants refused to loosen,” Alaoui asserts through her New York-based attorney John Paul Deverna.
“At the precinct, Plaintiff was made to sleep on a cement floor and was denied water. Plaintiff was later transported to located at HCCC, located at 30 Hackensack Ave, Kearny, NJ 07032, where she, Defendants JOHN AND JANE DOE SIX THROUGH THIRTEEN acting in concert and at different times placed Plaintiff in excessively tight handcuffs. Plaintiff continued to complain about the tight handcuffs which Defendants refused to loosen.”
The court filing continues that Alaoui said she needed medical attention while detained at the county jail in Kearny on August 13th, 2022, and even after vomiting blood, she was still denied “appropriate care.”
“Beginning on August 12, 2022, and continuing through at least August 13, 2022, Plaintiff suffered serious medical events—manifested in a seizure-like episode—that was brought about or contributed to by Defendant ’s actions and failure to act. During her medical event(s) Defendant officers, including BPD and HCCC staff, provided inappropriate and insufficient aid,” the lawsuit contends.
“Between August 12, 2022, and August 13, 2022, Defendant officers, including JOHN AND JANE DOE SIX THROUGH THIRTEEN, assaulted Plaintiff, by among other things, placing Plaintiff in tight handcuffs, grabbing, striking and placing parts of their body placing their body on top of Plaintiff, causing Plaintiff serious physical pain, injury, and causing her further injury.”
While Alaoui was eventually transferred to the Jersey City Medical Center on August 13th, she said she was ridiculed and harassed by police, as well as subjected to further injury by being handcuffed again.
“Defendants’ actions commencing on August 12, 2022, and continuing through August 13, 2022, did cause Plaintiff to become fearful for her life and safety, and did cause emotional and physical injuries to Plaintiff, the full extent of which is unknown but include partial paralysis, loss of motor function, inability to move portions of her body, pain, swelling, and bruising to large and numerous areas of the body, as well as mental anguish and other psychological injuries including fear, anxiety, shame, humiliation, indignity,” Deverna wrote.
Alaoui alleges that there was a failure to intervene by both the Bayonne police and Hudson County correctional officers, excessive force, assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligent, hiring, retention, and supervision, as well as “unnecessary and wanton infliction of pain due to a deliberate failure to provide timely or sufficient medical treatment.”
As a result, she is seeking compensatory and punitive damages, as well as attorneys’ fees and any other relief the court deems just and equitable.
The suit also names Wellpath Medical Services, a contractor at the county jail, as a defendant.
They are recently the subject of a lawsuit from the New Jersey Comptroller’s Office since their $13.5 million agreement with the county allegedly did not have a fair, open bidding process.
A city spokesman said the city’s policy is not to comment on pending legal matters, while a county spokesman did not return an email seeking comment.
Girl stop wasting the courts time. YOU WERE ARRESTED & LOCKED UP! That’s what happens, you didn’t like it? Well guess what THATS THE POINT… so you don’t do it again. It’s not meant to be comfortable… you were detained & ARRESTED…. you were not on vacation at a resort. Learn from your mistakes ans move on. Upon entering the jail u were seen by medical/nurses that check u out medically then give you a tetanus shot before your even brought to a cell. If you were on the cement floor, you chose to sleep there since every cell including medical and the bullpen have a nice comfortable metal bed.. it’s jail not the Ramada… GROW UP… Oh and BTW I’m a former inmate i’ve spent at least 3 years in H.C.C.C and unfortunately know the drill very well…. smh