A Lilburn woman is suing Gwinnett County police officers after she says they illegally entered her home, tasered her and falsified arrest documents.
Charlotte Moore is suing officers Jennifer L. Roberts, Justin C. Richey and David A. Leigh for $1 million after what started as a tenant eviction turned into a false arrest, according to the lawsuit.
Police were called to Moore’s home in July 2014 after tenant Christopher Lawrence violated rental terms, caused a disturbance and refused to leave the property, according to the lawsuit.
Moore had already placed Lawrence’s belongings in a rental unit before the eviction, hoping to avoid a confrontation. But that wasn’t the case.
Moore barred Lawrence from the kitchen after he threatened to poison her water, according to the lawsuit. When she didn’t move, Lawrence called the police.
Leigh, one of the officers, threatened to arrest Moore if she did not let Lawrence back in the house, the lawsuit says. He also said Lawrence had the right to kick down the kitchen door. Lawrence went to get his belongings, but he came back to a locked home and called police again.
The three officers, Roberts, Richey and Leigh, attempted to arrest Moore but were told by a judge that evictions were a civil matter. Police still threatened to arrest Moore if she didn’t let Lawrence back into the house.
After a back and forth with Moore, police forced their way into her home without a warrant, the lawsuit alleges.
Richey allegedly tasered Moore multiple times as she sat in her hallway. Moore was arrested for felony obstruction for kicking an officer and taken to the Gwinnett County Jail. The charge was later dropped after officers admitted to falsifying the report, according to the lawsuit.
Moore ran into another issue with the police department in November 2015 when they were again called to her home and forced her to allow a tenant back into a house, according to the lawsuit. Moore was also threatened with more charges.
An internal investigation at the department concluded the officers’ actions were in line with policy, the lawsuit claimed.
The Gwinnett County Police Department told Channel 2 Action News they do not comment on pending lawsuits.
About the Author
