A woman in California has filed a federal lawsuit against a Carlsbad police officer, as well as the city of Carlsbad, for using excessive force after he repeatedly punched her in the face while arresting her for failure to wear a seat belt while driving.
The New York Daily News reported that the suit is being brought by 40-year-old Cindy Hahn, who was arrested and beaten in 2013 while her two young children watched helplessly.
According to Hahn’s 68-point complaint, on July 31, 2013, she was leaving a birthday party with her children (ages 7 and 11) when they walked by an empty parked vehicle with the alarm blaring.
Multiple police cruisers and officers surrounded the vehicle, but were taking no action to deactivate the alarm or locate the owner. When Hahn, the daughter of a police officer, asked one of the officers at the scene why they weren’t shutting off the car alarm, the officer, later identified as Officer Kenyatte Valentine, reportedly told Hahn to mind her “own fucking business.”
Hahn then called the police non-emergency line to complain about Officer Valentine’s behavior, which included cursing at her in front of her two minor children. After she reached her car and drove away, Valentine pulled her over, claiming she wasn’t wearing her seat belt. She was then pulled her from the vehicle by Valentine and another officer and pinned to the ground as her children watched.
Valentine then repeatedly punched her in the face while holding her on the ground. The incident was caught on cell phone video by another person walking by while other bystanders tried to intervene but were removed by additional officers who appeared on the scene.
After being subdued and beaten by the two officers, Hahn was charged with resisting arrest and battery on a police officer. However, once the video was released on social media and attracted the attention of local media outlets, those charges were dropped.
Hahn’s complaint states the following:
“Ms. Hahn was transported to the emergency room where she was diagnosed with head and brain contusions and subsequently diagnosed with a concussion based on the Defendant Police Officer’s violence. Ms. Hahn suffers permanent memory loss and brain trauma as well as other physical and emotional injuries from the beating.”
Carlsbad police officials released a statement saying the department looks forward to seeing the case adjudicated.
“We are prepared to provide a complete and detailed account of the facts of this incident in a courtroom, not in the media,” the statement said. They provided no additional information about the initial charges against Hahn being dropped after the video surfaced.
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