A former St. Louis Detention Facilities Oversight member is suing ex-jail warden Jennifer Clemons-Abdullah, two police officers and a jail supervisor for using excessive force during an arrest and violating their civil rights.
Janis Mensah, then the board’s vice chair, was visiting the St. Louis City Justice Center on Aug. 31, 2023 in their capacity on the oversight board to learn more about detainee Terrance Smith, 55, who had died in custody that day due to heart problems. After waiting in the jail lobby for hours as protests erupted outside the jail, Mensah says Clemons-Abdullah called police without warning and had them arrested.
St. Louis Metropolitan Police officers Brian Gonzales and Ian Csapo are accused of punching Mensah and causing physical harm after arriving on scene to conduct the arrest. Captain Ann Flint, a supervisor at the jail at the time, is also listed as a defendant in the lawsuit and is accused of providing inadequate information to police and instigating the arrest.
“They started grabbing me and punching me, and these are pretty large men, a couple hundred pounds,” Mensah said. “Now I just kind of have to move forward with what’s available to me, and filing this lawsuit is.”…