Bushwick Stop-And-Frisk Leads To $1M Lawsuit, Court Records Show

BUSHWICK, BROOKLYN — Bushwick's 83rd Precinct faces a $1 million lawsuit after two cops allegedly stop-and-frisked a man they handcuffed, beat and arrested without any evidence he'd committed a crime, court records show.

Travis Simmons filed his $1 million lawsuit in Brooklyn Civil Court Monday accusing three NYPD officers of violating his constitutional rights in August, 2016, court records show.

Simmons said he was stopped and frisked near Locust and Beaver streets about 9 a.m. on Aug. 28, 2016 — three years after the controversial NYPD practice was ruled unconstitutional — by a police officer who had no reason to suspect him of a crime, according to the complaint.

NYPD officer Edward Fackler allegedly shoved his hands into Simmons' pockets, then arrested him even though his search did not turn up anything illegal, the suit says.

At Bushwick's 83rd Precinct, cops stripped Simmons, searched his body cavities then locked him in a cell, the complaint alleges.

Three cops demanded Simmons, who was still in handcuffs, take off his his belt and sneakers, then beat him and banged his head against a cell wall when he couldn't manage it, according to the complaint.

Simmons was then charged with marijuana possession, resisting arrest, tampering with evidence and assaulting Officer Fackler and sent to a hospital in handcuffs, the suit alleges.

The charges against Simmons were later dropped, according to the lawsuit.

Simmons is seeking $1 million in damages for a host of civil rights violations that include false arrest, illegal imprisonment, unlawful search, malicious prosecution, and cruel and unusual punishment, the complaint shows.

The NYPD said it would review the civil suit once it’s been served. Simmons' attorney Gregory Zenon did not responded to Patch's request for comment.

The 83rd Precinct has been associated with 19 lawsuits since 2007 that have resulted in $1,472,501 in settlement payments, none of which named Fackler as a defendant, according to city data.

The largest payouts went to a Brooklyn man, awarded $750,000, who accused 83rd Precinct officers of coercing witnesses to frame him for attempted murder and a female NYPD officer won $500,000 in damages for a 2015 sexual harassment lawsuit.