Mom Files Lawsuit Against City of Carlsbad After Video Released Showing Officers Pinning Her to the Ground

Cindy Hahn accuses officers in the lawsuit of "brutally” beating her while she was "unarmed and defenseless."

A Southern California mom filed a lawsuit against the City of Carlsbad after a video was released showing officers pinning the woman to the ground, according to court documents.

Cindy Hahn, a 40-year-old mother from Newhall, said she was beaten by officers in front of her 11-year-old and 7-year-old children after they left a birthday party at Legoland.

The lawsuit accuses officers at the Carlsbad Police Department of submitting "false and fraudulently prepared" police reports.

Hahn also claims officers "brutally" beat her while she was "unarmed and defenseless."

The City of Carlsbad released a statement regarding the suit:

"The City of Carlsbad looks forward to bringing this lawsuit before the proper judicial authorities as soon as possible. We are prepared to provide a complete and detailed account of the facts of this incident in a courtroom, not in the media," said Kristina Ray, a spokesperson for the City of Carlsbad.

Hahn is represented by Mark J. Geragos, a lawyer who has also represented P. Diddy and Chris Brown in the past. 

The incident occurred two years ago, but her attorney filed the federal lawsuit on her behalf on Friday, accusing the department of violating her civil rights.

Hahn has said she and her two children were returning home from Legoland and had stopped to use a public restroom. Her car alarm was going off, which alerted a police officer who was present.

Hahn said she complained about the officer's language. She called the police department to complain about officer's conduct before he ordered her out of car.

That's when officers allegedly took her to the ground. Hahn can be heard in the video saying "I didn't do anything" as she was already on the ground.

Hahn said in the suit that she was transported to a hospital where she suffered head and brain contusions.  

She was accused of resisting arrest and based on the police report, the district attorney filed charges against Hahn. But the charges were dropped. 

"They did not know there was a video," Geragos said. "I allowed at least one of the cops to testify to tell his story which we will charitably call lying, though some would call perjury."

"Later on, we showed the video to the district attorney, who promptly said, 'your honor, we move to dismiss."

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