Hackensack man alleges Paterson police officers beat him after he argued with ER nurse
By Jayed Rahman
Published: March 20, 2019
A Hackensack man has filed a lawsuit against the city alleging police officers beat him at the emergency room.
Valmir Xhemajli filed the lawsuit in New Jersey Superior Court on Mar. 14. He claims police officers struck him across the face and handcuffed him to the bed at the emergency room in St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center on Apr. 6, 2017.
Xhemajli arrived at the emergency room after experiencing an episode of post-traumatic stress disorder and seizure. At the hospital, he was visibly upset and agitated. He began arguing with a nurse when police officers, who were there on an unrelated matter, intervened.
“Shut up or I will slap you,” one police officer told Xhemajli. One officer struck him across the face while another grabbed him and handcuffed him to a bed. After he was restrained to the bed, police officers allegedly repeatedly beat him.
Xhemajli suffered a closed traumatic nondisplaced fracture of the rib on his right side, facial scaring, a broken tooth, and suffered three seizures requiring him to stay in the hospital for three days, according to the court complaint.
The lawsuit names police officers Jovan Candelo, James Jenkins, Ricardo Vazquez, John Farfan, and Michael Sisco. It lists other unidentified police officers.
Xhemajli is seeking unspecified amounts in damage and legal expenses.
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