NJ Woman Falsely Jailed For Crime; ‘Reasonable Mistake,’ Court Rules

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — Judith Maureen Henry was arrested on a warrant for a different woman with the same name. She spent more than two weeks in prison for a crime she didn’t commit.

A federal appellate court’s ruling? It was a “reasonable mistake.”

Last week, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the U.S. marshals who arrested Henry in 2019 had “qualified immunity,” which provides police officers protection from being sued for actions they take on the job.

In addition to the marshals who arrested her, Henry’s lawsuit also named Essex County and more than two dozen individual law enforcement officers and government officials in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

A precedential court opinion gives more details about the series of events that led to Henry’s arrest:

“In 1993, a different woman named Judith Maureen Henry (the “Absconder”) skipped parole in Pennsylvania. Fast forward to 2019, when the director of the Pennsylvania Interstate Parole Services issued a warrant for the Absconder’s arrest for the parole violation. That warrant, however, targeted Henry’s home address and attached her driver’s license photo. Parole Services forwarded the warrant to officials in New Jersey.”

Here's what happened next, court documents say:

“Certain marshals, along with New Jersey officials, ‘discussed and planned’ Henry’s apprehension. Those marshals, along with others, arrested Henry at her home on the morning of Aug. 22, 2019. They transported her to the Essex County Correctional Facility [in Newark] and assisted with her booking that day. Henry repeatedly told the marshals and others that she was innocent. Henry was held in New Jersey until Sept. 1, when she was transferred to Pennsylvania. Throughout her detention, she continued to declare her innocence and requested that authorities compare her fingerprints to the Absconder’s. But no official did so until Henry reached Pennsylvania. Officials there discovered on Sept. 3 that Henry’s fingerprints did not match those of the Absconder. Yet her detention continued for another two days before she was released on Sept. 5.”

Eventually, Henry took her battle to court, the judges’ written opinion continues:

“In August 2020, Henry sued several individuals and entities, including the United States Marshals Service (but not the marshals themselves). She named the marshals, both in their personal and official capacities, as defendants for the first time in the [third amended complaint], filed in December 2021. (Henry’s claims against the marshals in their official capacity were later dismissed with prejudice … The marshals filed a motion to dismiss, arguing that they were protected by qualified immunity, Henry’s claims impermissibly extended the Bivens doctrine, and she failed to state a claim under Rule 12(b)(6). In an oral ruling, the District Court rejected those arguments for want of factual development. The marshals timely appealed to us.”

The Third Circuit appellate court ruled in the marshals’ favor on Aug. 29, writing that the marshals’ arrest of Henry relied on information attached to the warrant and was a “reasonable mistake” – and therefore, her arrest did not violate the Fourth Amendment.

The appellate court reversed the order of the District Court denying the marshals’ motion to dismiss, and remanded to that court for it to dismiss Henry’s claims against the marshals.

• See Related: NJ Man Spent 2 Months In County Jail Despite Release Order, Report Says

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