Pittsburgh Mayor, Other Officials Sued Over City Protest Response

PITTSBURGH, PA — A federal class-action lawsuit alleges that Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto and other city officials violated the constitutional rights of demonstrators at a June 1 protest in East Liberty.

The lawsuit, filed Monday in U.S. District Court by five identified plaintiffs, contends the city violated the First Amendment rights of those protesting George Floyd's death. Floyd, an unarmed black man, died last month while being taken into police custody in Minneapolis; the officers involved are now facing murder and other charges.

"After ordering peaceful protesters to leave the area, PBP officers blocked their escape with chemical gas, riot police and mounted patrols. PBP then arrested several protestors for failing to disperse, subjecting them to confinement in the midst of a global COVID-19 pandemic," the lawsuit alleges.

"The PBP ordered tactical officers dressed inparamilitary garb to patrol a residential neighborhood in armored vehicles and arbitrarily throw canisters of chemical gas at and/or
arrest anyone they encountered."

Other defendants in the lawsuit include Pittsburgh Police Chief Scott Schubert, Public
Safety director Wendell Hissrich and police commanders Stephen Vinansky and Jason Lando.