MOUNT EDEN — NYPD officers opened fire in a Bronx hallway — apparently unprovoked — at a pair of women who were taking their dogs out for a walk, hitting one woman and a dog, a $1 million lawsuit against the city claims.
Shaquana DeJesus and Maribel Lopez were standing in the hallway near their apartment at Walton Avenue and East 171st Street about 1 a.m. March 17 when police opened fire on them and their pets, according to the lawsuit filed on June 24 in Bronx Supreme Court.
Bullets hit DeJesus in her thighs and left eye, causing permanent injuries and possible nerve damage, the suit says. One of the dogs was hit in the leg. Its condition was not clear.
Lopez and DeJesus, who has bullet fragments permanently lodged in her left thigh, were traumatized by the shooting and remain under psychiatric care, according to court papers.
The suit, which seeks $1 million in damages, claims the officers' actions "were without cause or justification."
The claim also alleges that reckless NYPD shootings "are the result of racial profiling" and are generally directed at African-Americans, Hispanics and Bronx residents.
DeJesus and Lopez could not be reached for comment. Lawyer Elliot Fuld, who is representing DeJesus and Lopez, declined to comment.
The NYPD did not respond to a request for comment and the New York City Law Department declined to comment.
