WINDSOR, Va. — A judge ruled Thursday that a lawsuit against the Town of Windsor for a "pattern of discriminatory policing" will move forward.
In December 2020, two Windsor Police officers stopped Army Lt. Caron Nazario for not having a visible rear license plate. He pulled over at a gas station, and the officers ended up pointing guns at him and pepper spraying him.
Following that, former Attorney General Mark Herring filed a lawsuit against the Town of Windsor for having a "pattern of discriminatory policing," weeks before Jason Miyares took over the office.
Miyares' office amended the lawsuit to add three claims that Windsor deprived Lt. Nazario and others of their First, Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment rights – therefore violating the Virginia Public Integrity and Law Enforcement Misconduct Act.
An attorney for Windsor asked a judge to dismiss the case Thursday. For two hours, he argued the complaint should get dismissed because it is a single incident involving one person, and doesn’t show a pattern of incidents by the town.
Ultimately, after hearing arguments from both sides, the judge denied the dismissal.
Isle of Wight NAACP members said they're happy to see AG Miyares is on top of this lawsuit.
“It is good to know that it is not about parties. I would think that the outgoing Democratic AG realized that maybe there are some problems where patterns or practices are concerned," Valerie Butler, Isle of Wight NAACP president, said. "It is nice to know that the current administration has also agreed to take up the case.”
The judge is now looking to plan a trial date with both attorneys.
Miyares' office is asking for a future jury trial.