A woman alleges she was illegally detained, harassed and injured at the hands of Fayetteville police officers in an incident outside her home on Dec. 25, 2020, according to a lawsuit filed by plaintiff Sheila Lee.
On the grounds of civil rights violations, Lee is suing the City of Fayetteville, Mayor Mitch Colvin, former Police Chief Gina Hawkins, and current and former officers at the Fayetteville Police Department allegedly involved in the encounter. The lawsuit was filed Dec. 22, 2023.
The complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina. On March 8, the complaint was selected for mediation, according to court documents.
The complaint alleges the officers “brutally and without justification, severely injured Ms. Sheila Lee, a 56-year-old African American woman.”
The officers being sued for allegedly violating Lee’s civil rights include current Detective Molly O’Hara, former Officer Richard Rodriguez and three former employees of the police department — Don Bell, Krista Zentner and Ashley Wolford — who were first named in an amended complaint Lee filed on March 5.
Lee claims she was followed home on Dec. 25, 2020, by officers O’Hara and Rodriguez, who had allegedly approached her when the officers were responding to an incident on the same street where she was parked. They asked her to vacate the scene and she complied, the lawsuit claims.
After being allegedly followed home by officers O’Hara and Rodriguez, Lee claims she was approached by the officers once she had pulled into her driveway. Following this, Lee alleges:
In addition to the officers involved, Lee is suing Colvin and Hawkins, who she alleges “have failed to put proper training and supervision programs in place and have allowed the practice of intimidation and excessive force by the police department to become routine.”
“The City’s policymakers have acted with deliberate indifference to the rights of its citizens, and the injuries and unlawful arrest of Ms. Lee are a direct result,” the complaint continues.
Lee is seeking compensation for “physical and mental injuries, economic losses, and loss of liberty,” according to the lawsuit. She is also seeking punitive damages from the five officers allegedly involved “as a result of their willful and reckless conduct.”
With the case moving into mediation, the parties may agree to a settlement without the need for a trial.
Legal representation requested
The city council appears primed to provide legal representation for O’Hara, Rodriguez, Hawkins and Colvin, with the item currently placed on the single-vote consent agenda for Thursday’s city council meeting. The council can move to remove the item from the consent agenda and instead add it as a discussion item or table it for future action. Otherwise, it will be approved along with other consent agenda items in a single vote.
Hawkins’ involvement with another legal case brings renewed attention to the former police chief’s controversial tenure. The upcoming vote comes three months after the city signed a $200,000 settlement with Hawkins, who had threatened to sue the city over claims of hostility and discrimination as police chief. The then-council voted 8-2 in favor of the settlement, with Council Members Deno Hondros and Mario Benavente opposing it.
“My biggest concern is simply that our city is rolling over when it comes to certain folks that are seeking a payday,” Benavente told CityView after the settlement was approved.
The city council meeting where council members will vote on providing legal representation will take place at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at City Hall, 433 Hay St. It will also be aired on Spectrum Cable Channel 7 and live-streamed at www.faytv.net.
Contact Evey Weisblat at eweisblat@cityviewnc.com or 216-527-3608.
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