Philadelphia, PA – The law firm of Mincey Fitzpatrick Ross, LLC. has secured a multimillion-dollar settlement prior to filing suit against the City of Philadelphia for Rickia Young who was illegally and brutally beaten by police officers and dragged from her SUV without breaking any laws. This appears to be the largest pre-suit settlement for a case of its kind in the city’s history.
On September 9, 2021, the law firm filed a lawsuit (Case ID: 210100602) on behalf of Ms. Young and her son against the National Fraternal Order of Police (NFOP) for their misuse of the image of Ms. Young’s son along with spreading misinformation about Ms. Young and her son in social media political propaganda pieces posted on all the NFOP’s social media handles.
The firm has a track record of success litigating and winning civil rights cases.
Announcement of the settlement and lawsuit filing comes approximately eleven (11) months after the incident on October 26, 2020. The Philadelphia Police Department has taken disciplinary action against multiple officers involved in the incident, including terminations of employment.
“Rickia Young’s victory is an example of the Mincey Fitzpatrick Ross Justice First approach to redressing civil rights abuses. We would not consider settlement of this matter without knowing that there would be a comprehensive disciplinary review, policy reform and serious consideration of criminal prosecution.”– Thomas Fitzpatrick, Partner, Mincey Fitzpatrick Ross, LLC.
‘The lawsuit we have filed against the NFOP is the next step in keeping our promise to hold all parties accountable for the damage done to Ms. Young’s reputation by false reports and photographs that were published immediately following the attack.” – Riley H. Ross III, Partner, Mincey Fitzpatrick Ross, LLC.
“As a Black Civil Rights Law Firm, we understand, perhaps more than most, what it means to feel marginalized and targeted by the police. We are proud to represent people like Ms. Young and use our experience and skill to achieve justice for our clients.” – Kevin Mincey, Partner, Mincey Fitzpatrick Ross, LLC.
On the night of the incident, Ms. Young was driving down Chestnut Street during a protest of the shooting death of Walter Wallace. Ms. Young encountered the police blocking the street while ordering her to turn around and go the other way. As she was completing the three-point turn the officers swarmed her car, smashing her car windows while violently pulling her and teenaged passenger out of the car while her hearing impaired 2-year-old son sat in his car seat terrified. Cops beat both Ms. Young and her teenage passenger causing injuries.
No charges have been filed against the officers who were involved. The firm is calling on The Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office to file criminal charges against the officers responsible in this matter as soon as possible.
Ms. Young’s son was found in police custody at 15th and JFK in his car seat, with a head injury, missing his hearing aids, and covered with glass from car windows that were smashed by police during the attack.
After photos of Ms. Young’s son being held by a police officer were published in the media, the NFOP, without conducting any investigation in to how the picture came to be, approved the posting the image on all their social media handles to its thousands of followers with a caption that stated:
This child was lost during the violent riots in Philadelphia, wandering around barefoot in an area that was experiencing complete lawlessness. The only thing this Philadelphia Police Officer cared about in that moment was protecting this child.
We are not your enemy. We are the Thin Blue Line. And WE ARE the only thing standing between Order and Anarchy.
This false and propagandized statement was shared by multiple other outlets and was viewed by thousands of people around the world.