A woman from Staten Island has filed a lawsuit against a deli and its owner after an incident in which she was dragged by her hair into the street, reports HuffPost. Jasmine Adams, 35, claims that the altercation occurred because the deli cashier mistook her for being transgender. The lawsuit alleges assault and battery, stating that the cashier became frustrated during a misunderstanding over a purchase of marijuana and proceeded to call Adams a “transvestite.” The cashier has not been publicl identified.
Video footage obtained by HuffPost shows a man in a white Denver Nuggets jersey dragging Adams by her hair and kicking her as spectators react in shock.
In the video, a person can be heard saying,
“You don’t need to be doing all that.”
Adams, in an interview with the New York Daily News, explained that she had entered the deli to purchase marijuana for a friend. Although marijuana is legal in New York City, only a few licensed establishments are allowed to sell it. Adams claimed that the cashier mistook her attempt to clarify the purchase for haggling and threw the marijuana on the ground when she paid.
The woman told the news outlet,
“I said it wasn’t about the price and that I was just trying to figure out what I was buying,”
after revealing that she was purchasing the marijuana for a friend and contacted her friend to confirm the price of $40.
According to Adams, when she refused to pick up the marijuana, the cashier began yelling at her and accused her of trying to get him fired when she asked for a refund. The lawsuit alleges that the cashier then called Adams a “transvestite” after noticing a pride flag on her watchband. He allegedly maced her and dragged her outside by her hair. Adams, who identifies as bisexual, expressed her disbelief at the cashier’s actions, stating that he had no right to become physical with her regardless of her gender identity. The New York City Police Department has confirmed that Adams filed a report with similar details to her lawsuit, and an investigation is ongoing.
#Clique, what are your thoughts?
