“Cat Lady” Beverly Roberts appear in police footage during her arrest in 2022. Roberts, along with friend and fellow cat-lover Mary Alston, have sued the city of Wetumpka, Alabama over the incident. YouTube screengrab Law&Crime Network.
If only Bob Barker were alive to see it.
In Alabama, two women have sued city officials claiming their attempts to safely control an exploding feral cat population by feeding, capturing and neutering found felines on their own dime, led to their wrongful arrest and imprisonment on “bogus” charges in violation of their First Amendment rights.
In the lawsuit reviewed Wednesday by Law&Crime, the women, Beverly Roberts, 86, and Mary Alston, 61 — who quickly became known as the “Cat Ladies” in the press following their 2022 arrest — allege that what happened to them that June in Wetumpka was done under “patently absurd” pretenses and was the result of their having angered city officials in the past with their protest and criticism.
Video of the arrest is available here, courtesy of Law&Crime:
Both of the women, their lawyer writes in the 17-page lawsuit filed in Alabama’s Middle District, had a history of complaining publicly about the city’s failure to enforce various animal safety regulations and their arrest was retaliation, plain and simple. Beyond trying to control the local cat population, the women also pushed for city officials to more regularly enforce a local ban on the “chaining” of dogs. The practice can often result in strangulation.
With feral cats running wild through Wetumpka, Alston and Roberts decided to get hands-on and began the practice of trapping, feeding, and neutering the animals before releasing or rehoming them. The practice is a common one and also used by the Humane Society.
But the local Humane Society hadn’t got a handle on things and neither had city officials, the women alleged. Things finally came to a head when they set up a live trap on a piece of public property near a county courthouse. There were no ordinances or laws against their doing so, the complaint claims.
Nevertheless, both of the women were arrested and sentenced to two years probation plus 10 days in jail after that day. The jail sentence was suspended and they were fined. When they moved to appeal the case, the city dismissed the charges altogether.
But that was a year ago and now the women, neither one of whom had any criminal record prior this episode, say they deserve damages after they were maliciously prosecuted, forced to undergo unlawful search and seizure and exposed to excessive force from Wetumpka police.
Alston alleges that police were ordered by Wetumpka Mayor Jerry Willis to “accost” her after he saw her trapping and feeding the cats on the property. Not breaking any laws or disturbing the peace as she tended to her trap on the lot, Alston says she and her fellow cat lady were violently “grabbed” and “jerked” as they were handcuffed and thrown into a squad car.
Roberts, the lawsuit notes, was 84 years old at the time of her arrest and a disabled veteran with a heart condition who kept pills in her purse. Alston claims she asked the arresting police officer if they could bring the medication into the jail if they were going to be detained. That request went ignored.
Roberts eventually “lost consciousness, fell to the floor, and hit her head” and was allegedly offered no medical assistance. The women say police saw Roberts fall and ignored her. They also are accused of refusing her request to make a single phone call.
The damages are unspecified but the lawsuit does note the women have requested a jury trial. When they were charged in 2022, they faced a bench trial, meaning the case was only heard by a judge.
In an interview with the Montgomery Advertiser in July 2023 when they were named local heroes for their help and love of local cats, Roberts proclaimed: “I still can’t believe this happened, it’s bulls—!”
Requests for comment to the City of Wetumpka as well as the Wetumpka Police Department were not immediately returned on Wednesday.
In addition to the mayor, the women have also sued Wetumpka Police Chief Greg Benton and assistant police chief Ed Reeves. Individual officers were also named. They include Wetumpka Police Officers Kameron Ricks, Brenden Foster and Jason Crumpton.
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