Charges Dropped Against Woman who Lost Eye During NYPD Arrest

Pictured: Johanna Pagan-Alomar lost her left eye during what she says was an unprovoked attack by an NYPD Officer on June 7, 2018, in the Bronx. Credit: Facebook

Prosecutors have dropped criminal charges brought against a Bronx woman who lost an eye during what she says was an unjustified beating by an NYPD officer.

Johanna Pagan-Alomar, 45, was initially charged with assault, harassment, and obstructing government administration for allegedly accosting Officer Theresa Lustica from behind while Lustica’s partner was arresting Pagan’s friend, Andy Rodriguez, 35, for heroin possession on June 7.

Pagan-Alomar, in a lawsuit filed against the NYPD, said video of the incident disproved the police department’s claim that she assaulted Lustica. She alleged the officer threw her on the ground and savagely beat her with closed fists — while the key to her handcuffs was wedged between her knuckles.

The blows knocked Pagan’s left eye from its socket and broke her orbital bone, her lawyers said.

The NYPD said its Internal Affairs Bureau conducted an investigation and determined that Lustica’s actions “were appropriate under the circumstances and neither excessive nor unnecessary.”