Howland woman sues, contending unlawful arrest

staff report

YOUNGSTOWN — A Howland woman has filed a false-arrest lawsuit contending a Poland Township police officer improperly apprehended her in a traffic stop, and that a Mahoning County jailer unreasonably searched her.

Natalie R. Fisher, of Celestial Drive, filed a civil lawsuit Wednesday in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court against Poland Township Patrolman Michael Koenig, an unidentified female county jailer, Sheriff Randall Wellington and the county commissioners.

Koenig stopped Fisher without legal justification on July 27 off Mathews Road in Poland Township and ran a warrant check on her, which showed a bench warrant for her arrest for failing to pay a speeding ticket in Youngstown Municipal Court, the suit says.

The officer unlawfully arrested Fisher, despite her having fully paid that ticket March 20 and took her to the jail, where the jailer unreasonably searched her in violation of the 4th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the suit says.

After being ordered to strip and shower in the jailer’s presence, Fisher was ordered to don jail attire with holes in its crotch and detained with male inmates in a holding cell for processing, the suit says.

Fisher “suffered outrage, anger, shame, embarrassment, humiliation and other emotional distress,” according to the suit, which seeks more than $25,000 in damages.

Linette Stratford, chief of the civil division of the county prosecutor’s office, which defends county and township officials, did not respond to a request for comment.

The case is assigned to Judge James C. Evans.