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Officers Yell Anti-Gay Slur at Man, Fracture His Ribs at Pride Parade: Suit

By Ben Fractenberg | August 19, 2015 2:10pm
 Jacob Alejandro claims a police officer threw him to the ground and then yelled an anti-gay slur at him during the 2014 Gay Pride Parade.
Jacob Alejandro claims a police officer threw him to the ground and then yelled an anti-gay slur at him during the 2014 Gay Pride Parade.
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MANHATTAN — An NYPD police officer pushed a man to the ground during the 2014 Gay Pride Parade and then used an anti-gay epithet against him, according to a federal lawsuit filed Monday.

Jacob Alejandro, 25, an openly gay health educator living in Brooklyn, was leaving the parade at Christopher and Weehawken streets at 7:30 p.m. on June 29 when the officer “forcefully” pushed him to the ground, and while he lay bleeding, yelled “get the f--k up you fa---t,” according to the court papers and his lawyer.

“I have seen too much bias and bigotry from NYPD officers, and I hope my case makes a difference,” Alejandro told the New York Post Wednesday.

Alejandro was leaving the parade with friends when an officer told him to walk over or around a barricade, his lawyer, Baree Fett, told DNAinfo.

A number of officers then allegedly piled on top of Alejandro, hit him and then arrested him.

Alejandro, who is diabetic, then requested medical attention, which he was denied, according to the lawsuit.

He was eventually taken to Bellevue Hospital and his glucose levels were measured to be dangerously high, court papers read.

He also suffered fractured ribs. 

Alejandro was charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. The charges were later dismissed.

“This is just shameful for someone to want to go to the parade and support his identity,” Fett said. “It’s bias-based profiling. He’s basically stopped because of who he is.”

Alejandro hopes the lawsuit will lead to better police training, Fett added.

“A lot of the problem is how officers interact with the community,” Fett said. “If that was something the NYPD focused more on some of these problems would be resolved.”

The NYPD did not immediately return a request for comment.

A spokeswoman for the NYC Law Department said they would "review the plaintiff's claims."