LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Kentucky state rep. Attica Scott, her daughter Ashanti and community activist Shameka Parrish-Wright said their rights to due process and equal protection were violated when Louisville police officers arrested them on felony rioting charges during protests over the police shooting of Breonna Taylor last year.
A lawsuit filed Monday said the three women were arrested prior to the 9 p.m. curfew Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer issued as a result of ongoing protests in September.
The women were arrested while walking to First Unitarian Church, a place offering sanctuary for protesters after curfew, one day after Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron announced the grand jury's decision in the Breonna Taylor case.
Police said the felony charge was connected to someone throwing a flare into the Louisville Free Public Library's main branch, though Scott later called the charges "bogus," posting a video of herself on the other side of the building.
All charges against the three women were dropped in November after Jefferson County Attorney Mike O'Connell's office amended and later moved to dismiss violations following a review of evidence. A press release for the lawsuit called the charges "meritless."
"As one of the Black women legislators across the country recently arrested for no reason and falsely charged, it would be an insult to the people of Louisville for me to do anything less than demand police accountability," Scott said.
The lawsuit was filed against LMPD officer Alex Eades, former interim Chief Robert Schroeder and a yet-to-be identified officer.
In addition to violating their constitutional rights, the lawsuit alleges malicious prosecution, intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress, negligent supervision and retention, assault and battery.
"We must stop LMPD from using the judicial process to further bully us and our non-violent protest," said Parrish-Wright, a mayoral candidate. "I believe in law and justice and they must be applied equally. LMPD continues to fail our community. They have too many officers who do not follow standard operating procedures and who make our neighborhoods unsafe."
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