PHILADELPHIA - A woman whose arm was broken after she fought being handcuffed by Lancaster cops has lost her lawsuit against its police department.
Philadelphia federal judge Judge Mia Roberts Perez on Nov. 26 granted summary judgment to the City and Officer Derek Kanuck, whose arrest of Salome Nzeba Kapepula was brought into question by the lawsuit.
Perez's ruling rejects Kapepula's claims for excessive force, Fourth Amendment violations and assault and battery. Kapepula screamed about her arm in the 30 seconds she was handcuffed.
"These facts and the body camera footage underscore that the officers could have de-escalated this entire situation," Perez wrote.
"However, notwithstanding this unfortunate reality, the evidence precludes a finding that Defendant Kanuck used excessive force. Plaintiff resisted arrest, and rather than acquiesce to Plaintiff's resistance, Defendant Kanuck continued to bend Plaintiff's arm behind her back so that Sergeant Greathouse could place the handcuffs on her."
A 911 call in October 2021 complained Kapepula was causing a disturbance by fighting her way into an apartment rented by Kapepula's friend, who was letting Kapepula live there.
The ruling says Kapepula was asked to vacate the apartment but she did not go willingly. Responding officers asked the friend if she wanted to pursue trespass charges, and she said yes.
So they attempted to arrest Kapepula and place in her handcuffs as Kapepula asked why she was being grabbed. She struggled against the handcuffs while bending her knees as Kanuck held her left arm.
After getting her into the police vehicle, Kanuck told Greathouse that he heard a pop noise in the woman's arm. She was taken to the hospital and was found to have a fractured left arm.
Charges of public drunkenness and trespass were later dismissed.
"Even when viewing the facts in the light most favorable to Plaintiff, the totality of the circumstances show that Defendant Kanuck had a reasonable belief that Plaintiff committed the crime of defiant trespass," Perez wrote.
"It is immaterial that the charges against Plaintiff were later dismissed."
Fourth Amendment search and seizure charges were also dropped, as it was Greathouse who looked through her purse and he was not named as a defendant.