Woman Sues Marlborough, Police Over Arrest After Seizure

MARLBOROUGH, MA — A North Brookfield woman is suing Marlborough and three police officers in federal court over a 2018 incident where she was arrested and charged after a car crash she says was caused by a seizure, according to court documents.

Donna Ledoux, 63, claims an officer used excessive force while arresting her. Ledoux also says Marlborough failed to properly investigate the incident and wrongly pressed criminal charges that were later dismissed, according to the lawsuit.

In January 2018, Ledoux hit two cars near Williams Street and Stearns Road after she suffered a seizure, according to the suit. She continued driving until Marlborough police Oficer Paul Conners pulled her over along Lakeside Avenue.

The suit claims Conners ordered Ledoux out of her car at gunpoint while fellow Marlborough police officers Ryan Braswell and Christopher LeDuc stood nearby. Conners then "arrested the plaintiff, and in the process of doing so, caused her physical harm and other injuries," the suit says.

Ledoux was taken to jail and later charged with leaving the scene of an accident, failure to stop, negligent operation of a vehicle, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and failure to drive in the right lane, according to Marlborough police logs.

Ledoux is suing Conners for his role in her arrest and prosecution, while she's suing LeDuc and Braswell for not intervening when Conners used force, the suit says. The suit also claims a citizen complained about the officers' behavior during her arrest, and that Marlborough didn't give that information to her attorney during her prosecution. She also claims Marlborough has failed to train its officers on how to respond to people experiencing medical emergencies.

Attorney Courtney Mayo, who is representing Marlborough in the suit, declined to comment on the allegations. Ledoux's attorney, Michael Heineman, did not immediately return a request for comment about the suit.

The suit was initially filed in Worcester County Superior Court, but Marlborough asked for it to be moved to federal court due to the scope of Ledoux's allegations. Ledoux is seeking compensation for the ordeal, but the suit doesn't specify how much.

Marlborough has been sued over a wrongful arrest. In 2006, Eric Sarsfield reached a $2 million settlement with Marlborough for his arrest and prosecution in 1986 over a rape he didn't commit. In his suit, Sarsfield claimed Marlborough detectives made up evidence and coerced the victim into identifying Sarsfield as the rapist.