SKETCHES OF COURT: Pro se litigant has his day in court
In this courtroom sketch, Hon. Mark Partnow presides as a pro se plaintiff addresses the jury in the civil court trial Jonathan Ramos vs. City of New York. Ramos (standing) brought the eponymous lawsuit over an incident in which he alleges police brutality and excessive force. Ramos related to the jury that while he had recovered from any physical injuries, above all what he desired was for his story to be heard.
To the extent that the court is under no obligation to consider a pro se litigant any differently than it treats a lawyer, the process is seldom carried through to trial, according to the office of the County Clerk.
In June 2005 the police were in attendance at an annual outpouring of Latino community in Sunset Park, after the Puerto Rican Day Parade in Manhattan. Ramos had been called to the area by a local activist videographer friend, to also help record the street scene and in anticipation of documenting an oppressive police presence. Ramos alleges that during the course of the taping, he was thrown face to the ground, maced and falsely arrested though that was not specifically evidenced in the video.
The jury heard testimony from the deputy chief officer at the scene, and from the community activist videographer. The jury screened a 30-minute video compilation entered into evidence. In the video can be heard sounds of whistles, cowbells, an ambulance siren, interaction between crowds and police, orders to disperse and a cry for help, amid handheld camera crowd visuals inclusive of Ramos, cuffed, in a police van.