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So your probably sitting in your apartment in Brooklyn right now, still furious about getting arrested for absolutely nothing. Maybe the 75th Precinct in East New York grabbed you off the street. Maybe cops from the 77th in Crown Heights decided you “fit a description.” Or maybe you got caught up in one of those sweeps in Brownsville where they arrest everyone first and ask questions later. Look, we get it. Your PISSED OFF and scared. And honestly? You should be! Because Brooklyn precincts have paid out MILLIONS in false arrest settlements and you deserve your share!
Brooklyn is ground zero for false arrests in NYC. The numbers are absolutely INSANE. The 75th Precinct alone has paid out $9.9 MILLION in settlements from 104 cases just between 2019-2024! Think about that – one precinct, over a hundred lawsuits, nearly ten million dollars of taxpayer money because they can’t stop falsely arresting people.
Brooklyn has the highest arrest rate of all five boroughs. Not because there’s more crime – because cops here arrest first and figure it out later. The Eastern District of New York, which covers Brooklyn, handles thousands of civil rights cases against the NYPD every single year.
Just this year alone, NYC has already paid out $82,168,417 in police misconduct settlements as of July 2024! And Brooklyn precincts are leading the pack. The 75th, 77th, and 73rd precincts are the worst offenders, racking up millions in settlements each. Your tax dollars are literaly paying for cops to violate peoples rights!
Let me break down the worst offenders in Brooklyn based on actual settlement data from NYC Comptroller reports:
The 75th Precinct (East New York/Cypress Hills): 104 cases, $9.9 million in settlements. These cops are so bad, they’re among the top 4 precincts in ALL of NYC for complaints. They do illegal strip searches, plant evidence, and make up charges daily.
The 77th Precinct (Crown Heights): Over $3 million in settlements since 2019. They target young Black men walking home from work, claim everyone is “loitering,” and arrest people for filming them.
The 73rd Precinct (Brownsville): 78 cases totaling $1.5 million. Ocean Hill-Brownsville residents know not to even look at these cops wrong or your getting arrested for “obstruction.”
We’ve seen cases like Derrick Baxton who was taken to the 75th Precinct, strip-searched for NO REASON, and got a $30,000 settlement. Another Brooklyn man got $5.7 MILLION after cops tasered him IN THE FACE and blinded him in one eye! These aren’t isolated incidents – this is how Brooklyn cops operate every single day.
If your filing a lawsuit in Brooklyn, you need to know exactly where to go. For state claims, its Kings County Supreme Court at 360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201. This is the busiest civil courthouse in the entire state – they see false arrest cases every single day.
For federal civil rights claims, you file in the U.S. District Court Eastern District of New York at 225 Cadman Plaza East, Brooklyn. Federal court is right downtown, easy to get to from anywhere in Brooklyn. The Eastern District covers Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, Nassau, and Suffolk – population of 8 million people!
But remember – BEFORE any lawsuit, you MUST file a Notice of Claim within 90 DAYS with NYC Comptroller. That goes to 1 Centre Street in Manhattan, NOT Brooklyn. Miss this deadline and your case is dead forever. We’ve seen people with million-dollar cases lose everything because they filed 91 days later.
If your still facing criminal charges, that’s in Brooklyn Criminal Court at 120 Schermerhorn Street. You need to be careful – what you say in criminal court affects your civil case. Prosecutors and police lawyers share information to screw you over.
Brooklyn has unique problems that make false arrests worse here than other boroughs. First, gentrification. Cops arrest long-time Black and Latino residents in neighborhoods like Bed-Stuy and Bushwick to “clean up” for new white residents. You’ve lived there 20 years but suddenly your “suspicious” on your own block.
Second, Brooklyn has massive public housing projects where cops treat everyone like criminals. Red Hook Houses, Marcy Houses, Pink Houses – if you live there, your automaticaly a suspect. Cops do vertical patrols arresting people for literaly standing in there own building lobbies.
Third, language barriers in neighborhoods like Sunset Park, Brighton Beach, and Borough Park. Cops claim you “consented” to searches when you don’t speak English. They arrest you for not following commands you couldn’t understand. Russian, Chinese, Yiddish, Spanish speakers all get targeted.
Fourth, proximity to Manhattan. Cops claim your coming from Manhattan to sell drugs in Brooklyn or going to Manhattan to commit crimes. Living near a bridge or subway line makes you suspicious. Taking the L train at night? Must be up to something illegal!
Let me give you ACTUAL settlement amounts from Brooklyn cases, not made-up numbers:
Recent Brooklyn settlements: $5.7 million for being tasered in the face and losing an eye. $375,000 for false arrest leading to months in Rikers. $225,000 for five days locked up on bogus charges. $30,000 for illegal strip search at 75th Precinct.
For regular cases without serious injury: Arrested and released same day? $5,000-10,000. Held overnight at Brooklyn Central Booking? $10,000-20,000. Weekend at Rikers because of false arrest? $20,000-50,000. Missed work and lost your job? Add another $10,000-30,000.
But here’s what affects YOUR case in Brooklyn: Kings County juries know how NYPD operates and are often sympathetic. Brooklyn residents on juries have probably been harassed by cops themselves. But the city knows Brooklyn residents often need quick money, so they lowball settlements hoping you’ll take $5,000 to go away.
Location matters too. False arrest in Park Slope or Brooklyn Heights? Jury might think you don’t need money. False arrest in East New York or Brownsville? Jury understands the daily harassment. Your neighborhood affects your settlement value whether thats fair or not.
Where your case gets heard makes a HUGE difference. Kings County Supreme Court at 360 Adams Street sees thousands of police misconduct cases. Some judges are former civil rights lawyers who get it. Others are former Brooklyn DAs who think cops walk on water.
Federal court in the Eastern District is different. Federal judges don’t have the same connection to NYPD. They follow federal law more strictly. But they also grant qualified immunity more often, which protects cops. Federal cases take longer but can get bigger verdicts.
Brooklyn Criminal Court at 120 Schermerhorn is where your fighting the false charges. These judges see the same cops lying every day but still tend to believe them. The Brooklyn DA’s office works hand-in-hand with NYPD, so they protect each other.
Travel matters for witnesses. If your witnesses live in Canarsie or Bay Ridge, getting to downtown Brooklyn courts is easier than going to Manhattan. The 2, 3, 4, 5, B, D, N, Q, and R trains all stop near the courthouses. Your witnesses are more likely to show up.
Living in Brooklyn, you’ve probably seen or experienced these false arrest situations:
Stop-and-frisk that becomes arrest when you ask “why?” Happens constantly on Flatbush, Nostrand, and Utica Avenues. You ask for badge numbers, suddenly your “obstructing.”
Mass arrests at protests. Whether its a BLM march on Eastern Parkway or demonstration at Barclays Center, NYPD arrests everyone then figures out charges later. Most get dismissed but you still spent days in jail.
If you’ve been falsely arrested in Brooklyn, every hour counts. Here’s your action plan:
Document injuries immediately. Go to Kings County Hospital, Maimonides, NY Presbyterian Brooklyn, or any emergency room. Get photos of everything – bruises, scrapes, torn clothes. Even if you feel fine, get checked. Adrenaline hides injuries that show up later.
Get witness information NOW. That person who filmed it on there phone? Get there number before they disappear. Other people arrested with you? Exchange contacts. The bodega owner who saw everything? Talk to them immediately. Brooklyn is transient – people move constantly.
File a CCRB complaint even though they’re useless. Creates an official record. You can file online or go to there office at 100 Church Street in Manhattan. CCRB almost never disciplines cops but the complaint helps your lawsuit.
Demand all records immediately. Get arrest reports, criminal complaints, booking photos, medical records from custody, desk appearance tickets. File FOIL requests for body cam footage (good luck getting it), precinct surveillance, 911 calls. The 75th, 77th, and 73rd Precincts are notorious for “losing” helpful evidence.
Brooklyn juries are unique in NYC. This is the most diverse borough – Caribbean immigrants, Orthodox Jews, Chinese families, hipsters, long-time Black residents, new gentrifiers. Your jury could be anyone, and that affects strategy.
Brooklyn residents generally don’t trust NYPD. They’ve seen the harassment. They know someone who’s been falsely arrested. There less likely to automaticaly believe cops than Manhattan juries. But they also know when someone’s trying to game the system.
Different neighborhoods have different views. A jury from Marine Park sees cops differently than a jury from Bedford-Stuyvesant. Bay Ridge residents have different experiences than Crown Heights residents. We analyze jury pools to understand who’ll be sympathetic to your case.
Brooklyn juries also understand the economic reality. They know what losing a job means. They understand missing rent payments. They get how an arrest record destroys opportunities. Manhattan juries might not understand struggling to make ends meet – Brooklyn juries do.
We know Brooklyn inside and out. We know the 75th Precinct’s $9.9 million history. We know which judges at Kings County Supreme Court actualy hold cops accountable. We know Eastern District federal procedures. This is our borough and we fight for Brooklyn residents like family.
Most Manhattan firms won’t come to Brooklyn. They think its too far, too difficult, not worth there time. They don’t understand Brooklyn communities or how NYPD operates here. We’re in Brooklyn courts every week. We know the players, the patterns, the problems specific to each precinct.
We handle both criminal defense and civil rights cases. If your still fighting charges from the false arrest, we coordinate both cases. What helps your criminal case helps your civil case. Most lawyers only do one or the other – we do both strategically.
We’ve taken on the worst Brooklyn precincts and won. The 75th, 77th, 73rd – we’ve sued them all. They know we don’t take lowball settlements. They know we’ll go to trial. They know we have resources to fight for years if necessary. That leverage gets you better settlements.
Call us RIGHT NOW at 212-300-5196
Brooklyn residents deserve justice – Not more harassment!
Don’t let them get away with violating your rights just because your from Brooklyn! Every single day you wait hurts your case. That bodega surveillance video? Deleted after 30 days. Witness memories? Fading fast. Your bruises? Healing and can’t be documented.
The NYPD thinks Brooklyn residents won’t fight back. They think you’ll take whatever crumbs they offer. They think you don’t have resources to sue. Prove them wrong! Stand up for your rights and make them pay for treating Brooklyn like there personal playground!
Disclaimer: Settlement amounts vary based on specific facts. Past results don’t guarantee future outcomes. We proudly serve all Brooklyn neighborhoods from Greenpoint to Sheepshead Bay.
Very diligent, organized associates; got my case dismissed. Hard working attorneys who can put up with your anxiousness. I was accused of robbing a gemstone dealer. Definitely A law group that lays out all possible options and best alternative routes. Recommended for sure.
- ROBIN, GUN CHARGES ROBIN
NJ CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEYS