A woman in Indiana says she was pepper sprayed, stripped naked and forced to walk around a jailhouse in the nude, according the woman's lawyer.
The alleged incident took place when Floyd County officers arrested 31-year-old Tabitha Storms Gentry for a misdemeanor on March 30, The Courier-Journal reported. Gentry was led to a padded jail cell where officers forced her clothes off and left her naked in the room for several hours, according to jail surveillance footage obtained by the newspaper.
During that time Gentry, a mother of four, was pepper-sprayed through a slot in the door. She was later allowed to wash the spray off, but was given a short smock that did not cover her body and was led by a male officer through the jailhouse.
"There is absolutely no justification for this," Laura Landenwich, Gentry's lawyer, told the newspaper.
The lawsuit comes after Landenwich settled a different lawsuit on behalf of another woman who reportedly had a similar experience with Floyd County officers.
Gentry was led into the jailhouse at around 4 a.m. after she was arrested for disorderly conduct and resisting law enforcement. Two female officers and one male officer forced Gentry to the ground and removed her bra, underwear and a pink T-shirt, according to the surveillance footage.
Gentry was left in the cell for an hour, shouting and hitting the cell door. At 5:12 a.m. a hand pushed through a slot in the door and dispensed pepper spray into her eyes.
According to one officer's report, the woman's knocking was upsetting the other inmates so she was sprayed to "gain her compliance for the safety of this facility," The Courier-Journal reported.
At 6:01 a.m., Gentry is given a scant-fitting smock to wash the pepper spray off. Her breasts and private area could be seen as the male officer led her back to the cell.
It wasn't until 11 a.m. that Gentry was released, the newspaper reported.
Police claim Gentry was drunk and attempted to kick an officer, which prompted police to remove her clothes.
Police also said a person's clothes can be removed if it needs to be searched for items including drugs.
Landenwich intends to file the lawsuit next week in U.S. District Court in New Albany.
