October 25, 2011 Florida barbers sue sheriff’s office over raid-arrests www.privateofficer.com
Orlando Fla Oct 25 2011 Several barbers who were handcuffed in front of customers at their shop said today they will file a lawsuit against the sheriff’s office and a state licensing agency.
The barbers at the Strictly Skillz barbershop on North Pine Hills Road said Orange County Sheriff’s Office deputies working with the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation handcuffed the barbers in front of their customers. The arrests were part of a sting operation that targeted barbershops in areas populated primarily by black and Hispanic people.
Barbers at Strictly Skillz and another targeted shop, Just Blaze, said in December 2010 that they would sue about the incidents.
Orlando attorney Natalie Jackson, who is representing the barbers, said during a news conference today that the suit will be filed in federal court.
She said the suit will seek compensatory damages and will attempt to prevent the sheriff’s office from conducting similar joint operations in the future.
The sheriff’s office released a report in June that cleared deputies of any wrongdoing in connection with the raids in August, September and October 2010.
During the raids, about 35 people were arrested on a charge of barbering without a license, a charge that had rarely resulted in physical arrests in the past.
Source:orlando sentinel
Tags: Florida barbers sue sheriff's office over raid-arrests
- Leave a comment
- Posted under lawsuit
