Dubuque police officers face another lawsuit alleging misconduct

The Dubuque Police Department is again being sued for excessive force, this time by a Wisconsin woman, who claims an officer pushed her down the stairs of a city bus after she threatened to punch him.

Korey Monahan of Appleton, Wisc., admits in the lawsuit filed last week in U.S. District Court that she had been out drinking with friends, got separated from them and ended up on a city bus Sept. 14, 2014.

David O'Brien, Monahan's lawyer previously told The Gazette Monahan apparently became rowdy on the bus and she told Dubuque officer Ryan Clark that she would punch him in the face if he arrested her.

Monahan, who's 5 foot 2 and weighs 115 pounds, according to the suit, then told him she wouldn't punch him and Clark replied 'Good, because I would f…. destroy you.” Clark then grabbed Monahan, 'turned her around and slammed her head and torso down into the stairs of the bus,” causing severe injuries and bruising.

O'Brien said Monahan didn't resist arrest and took no physical action against the officer. He added that the incident was captured on the bus video camera.

Two previous lawsuits filed against Dubuque officers also involved women who didn't resist arrest. One woman was slammed against a truck, hitting her head, and the other was slammed to the ground, both incidents resulting in cuts, bruises and facial scarring, those suits claim.

All three suits claim the department has a pattern or practice of excessive force in making criminal arrests. And the department has failed to properly train or supervise officers in following department policy.

The Monahan suit also claims a violation of freedom of speech because the excessive force used against the woman was in retaliation for her threatening the officer.

Waterloo police also face five similar federal lawsuits, which claim excessive force was used against people not resisting arrest.

l Comments: (319) 398-8318; trish.mehaffey@thegazette.com