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By Billal Rahman
Immigration Reporter
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A New Jersey woman has filed a $500,000 claim against the Trump administration, alleging federal immigration agents threw her to the ground while she was attempting to help an injured woman outside Newark's Delaney Hall detention center, leaving her with a fractured kneecap and concussion symptoms.
Norma Bowe, a nurse clinician and associate professor of public health at Kean University in Union, New Jersey, operates a mobile health clinic through the Reformed Church of Highland Park.
The clinic provides blood pressure and blood sugar checks, cancer screenings, mental health support, first aid, and other medical services to families visiting people held at Delaney Hall. Bowe said she was providing medical support outside the Newark facility on May 25 when someone asked her to assist an injured person near one of its gates.
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"All of a sudden, I felt someone grab the back of my shirt, and then two ICE agents kind of pulled me onto the sidewalk," Bowe told Newsweek in a phone interview. "My head slammed the sidewalk, the left side of my head, and then my right knee hit the sidewalk."
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A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) did not respond to the specific allegations raised in Bowe's claim, instead referring Newsweek to a statement issued after the May 25 incident.
What Happened Outside Delaney Hall?
The incident occurred during a period of unrest at Delaney Hall, where detainees staged hunger and labor strikes, and advocates had raised concerns about medical care, food and treatment inside the facility.
Bowe said she began visiting Delaney Hall about twice a month to provide medical support after the husband of one of her students was detained last year.
"I was not there as a protester," she said.
"I call our mobile clinic the compassion lab because we are taking care of people, sometimes even on a sidewalk, and we're treating everyone with the dignity and respect that a human being deserves," Bowe said.
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Bowe said the clinic was asked to provide additional support during Memorial Day weekend because of the hunger strike. Earlier on May 25, she said, she had assessed two children who were having difficulty breathing after learning they would not be able to visit their father.
At about 1 p.m., Bowe said someone directed her toward an injured person near a secondary gate. The administrative claim says Bowe walked toward the area wearing a bright red stethoscope and encountered Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, other law enforcement officers and demonstrators.
Bowe said she saw a young woman being dragged along the ground by agents.
"She was being dragged, arms over her head, and her whole shirt came off," Bowe said. "She was yelling: 'Help me. Help me.'"
Bowe said she moved closer because she intended to help the woman. She then felt someone grab the back of her shirt, she said.
The claim alleges that one masked agent approached Bowe from behind and shoved her while a second agent came from her right side. Together, the agents threw her forward with enough force that she became airborne before striking the ground, according to the filing. Bowe landed on her face and knee and injured her hand while attempting to break the fall, the claim says.
Footage from the scene shows Bowe, wearing a white shirt and a red stethoscope, step into the crowd before being thrown to the pavement by officers.
"What went through my head was Alex Pretti, the nurse who was killed in Minneapolis, trying to help somebody up from the ground," Bowe said.
The filing says members of the public helped Bowe after the fall, while the agents involved and other federal officers at the scene did not offer assistance.
Bowe said she immediately sat up because she was concerned the agents might approach her again.
"My head was on swivel because I didn't know if they were going to come for me again," she said.
Bowe returned to the mobile clinic before going to the emergency room at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick, she said.
The administrative claim says Bowe suffered injuries to her face, head, right knee, right arm and right hand. It says an MRI identified a kneecap fracture and torn meniscus. The filing also says Bowe has experienced persistent headaches, difficulty sleeping, pain and mental distraction since the incident.
Bowe said she was diagnosed with post-concussive symptoms and whiplash and continues to receive treatment.
"I had a fracture of my kneecap," she said. "I had three medial meniscus tears inside my knee and fluid on top of my kneecap."
Bowe said she continues to experience headaches and pain around her left eye and is scheduled to see a neurologist.
She said the knee injury has limited her mobility and will require an extended period of physical therapy. The nurse clinician said the injuries have also affected her ability to participate in activities she previously enjoyed, including caring for her infant grandchild, and that she noticed the effect on her movement while caring for her grandchildren at a family camp in upstate New York. Newsweek requested photographs of Bowe's injuries from her attorneys, but they declined to provide them.
What Has DHS Said About the Incident?
Following the clashes outside the facility on May 25, DHS said that "no individuals were directly struck by pepper ball projectiles" and that the agency was taking "appropriate and constitutional measures to uphold the rule of law and protect our officers and the public from dangerous rioters."
"Rioters obstructed law enforcement from exiting the ICE facility. Officers issued multiple lawful verbal commands for rioters to clear the area. Rioters refused to follow law enforcement commands and continue to obstruct the exit route. Our law enforcement followed their training and used the minimum amount of force necessary to protect themselves, the public, and federal property," the department said at the time.
"The First Amendment protects speech and peaceful assembly—not rioting," it continued, adding, "We remind the public that rioting is dangerous—obstructing law enforcement is a federal crime and assaulting law enforcement is a felony."
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ACLU Calls for ICE Agents To Be Identified
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Jersey filed the administrative claim on Bowe's behalf on Monday under the Federal Tort Claims Act. An administrative claim is not a lawsuit or a court finding. It allows a federal agency to investigate and respond to allegations before a claimant can pursue certain litigation against the government. The filing was submitted to DHS and ICE. It alleges assault, battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
Bowe said filing the claim was difficult, but that she wanted the agents involved to be identified and held accountable.
Dillon Reisman, an attorney with the ACLU of New Jersey, told Newsweek the organization had not identified the agents allegedly involved. He said photographs exist but that the officers' masks make identification difficult.
"As the Trump administration continues to enable ICE agents to brutalize communities, it's important we use every tool available to seek justice," Jeanne LoCicero, the legal director for the ACLU of New Jersey, said in a news release, adding that Bowe's experience "is one more example of how ICE is acting lawlessly and poses a danger to everyone in our communities. ICE must be held to account through all legal means available."
The attorneys asked DHS to identify the individuals and determine whether personnel from other federal agencies were involved. Bowe's attorneys said they filed the claim without the benefit of formal discovery and reserved the right to amend or supplement it as they gather additional evidence.
Federal agents are facing a litany of allegations of excessive use of force under the Trump administration's deportation program.
"I really want to see somebody held accountable and someone held responsible," Bowe said. "I'm worried and scared, of course. I'd be crazy not to be. But I feel very strongly about standing up and telling my story."
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Matthew Cannon and Shakeema Edwards.
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