MOTT HAVEN, the Bronx — Lawyers representing protesters who were injured during a controversial police encounter between a group of Black Lives Matter demonstrators and the NYPD are calling for reparations.
Human rights groups have called the confrontation a ‘planned assault.’
The Bronx Defenders, a non-profit group of public defenders, say some protesters who were injured on June 4 on Brook Avenue in the Mott Haven section of the Bronx suffer from permanent nerve damage, are still receiving physical therapy and have a range of emotional injuries. They say if the city agrees to reparations, it could be a way to avoid a potentially lengthy and costly legal battle.
The group sent a letter to Mayor Bill de Blasio and City Comptroller Scott Stringer.
“We came up with this idea for asking not only for compensation for the injuries they suffered but also to give back to the community,” said Jenn Rolnick Borchetta with the Bronx Defenders.
The fund would compensate not only the 24-member collective the group is representing, but it could be accessed by anyone who was injured and is planning to sue the NYPD.
The “Mott Haven Collective” group is also calling for additional funding for the local community.
