‘Orange Is the New Black’ Actress Taryn Manning Seeking $10M From NYC Over ‘False Arrest’
Actress Taryn Manning is taking legal action against the city of New York for the sum of $10 million, claiming she was falsely arrested in 2014.
Manning, known for her role as Tiffany “Pennsatucky” Doggett on Orange Is the New Black, filed a New York Supreme Court petition against the city on Monday, claiming the New York Police Department should not have arrested her after she was accused of making criminal threats against a woman whom the actress had previously obtained a restraining order against.
Following Manning’s arrest in November 2014, the New York District Attorney’s office declined to press charges against her, but her attorney alleges she remained in police custody for hours despite the NYPD being aware no charges would be filed.
MORE: ‘OITNB’ Star Taryn Manning Arrested in New York
“The meeting ended when I was handcuffed by a detective and locked in a small room adjacent to the interview room,” Manning, 37, said in a sworn affidavit filed with the petition on Monday. “Approximately 20 minutes later, I was removed [from the room] still handcuffed and marched through the precinct. I was processed and ultimately placed in a holding cell.”
“Although the arrest was voided and sealed…the NYPD then reported Ms. Manning’s [false] arrest to media outlets,” the petition states.
Jeanine Heller, the woman who claimed Manning had threatened her, had previously been arrested twice for allegedly stalking and harassing the 37-year-old actress. Heller was later arrested a third time for violating a previous plea agreement by attempting to contact Manning via text messages. She was sentenced to six months in jail in July 2015.
MORE: Taryn Manning’s Stalker Is Back in Jail
With this petition, Manning is seeking permission to file a claim against the city after failing to do so within the 90-day deadline.
“Ms. Manning should never have been arrested where the New York City Police Department received advance notice from the New York County District Attorney’s Office that Ms. Manning would not be prosecuted based on an allegation of the subject complainant,” Manning’s attorney James Franzetti said in a statement to ET.
“It was also astonishing that the NYPD acted on an allegation of a complainant with a glaring prosecutorial (two prior arrests, charges including stalking and harassing Ms. Manning) and plea history.”
MORE: Taryn Manning’s Ex-Makeup Artist Alleges That the 'OITNB’ Actress Assaulted Her
Franzetti says the petition is the first step in further legal action against the city. “Substantively, the petition concerns the acquired, actual knowledge of the City of New York of the essential, foundational facts which serve as the basis for Ms. Manning’s claims and causes of action for false arrest, civil rights and additional statutory violations.”
“My damages include attorney’s fees, hours of detention, emotional distress and reputational harm,” Manning said in her affidavit.
In a separate legal battle, Manning was accused less than two weeks ago of assaulting her ex-makeup artist, which Manning’s attorneys quickly denied in a statement to ET.
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