Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel, together with The Legal Aid Society Prisoners’ Rights Project, filed a federal lawsuit in the Southern District of New York on behalf of Jose Guadalupe, a mentally disabled inmate, who was severely beaten by Rikers Island guards on September 2, 2014. The assault occurred after Mr. Guadelupe voiced his objection to guards ripping down family photos and magazine clippings from the walls of his cell. Even though Mr. Guadalupe was handcuffed and not a threat, the four officers responded by throwing Mr. Guadalupe to the ground, where they repeatedly punched him in the head and kicked him in the back, legs, and ribs. Following the beating, Mr. Guadalupe was left in a hot cell for nearly six hours, going in and out of consciousness, before he was finally transported to a nearby medical center where he was treated for injuries including a concussion, bruises to his ribs, facial swelling, lower back pain, dizziness, and cuts to his lip and right eyebrow. He was confined to a wheelchair for three weeks after the assault. Mr. Guadelupe is represented by ECBAWM attorneys Jonathan S. Abady and Zoe Salzman, along with Legal Aid Society Prisoners’ Rights Project’s Jonathan S. Chasen and Mary Lynne Werlwas

“Inmate claims Rikers Island guards beat him and ignored his injuries, will file lawsuit,” New York Daily News