CONTRIBUTED PHOTO Holli Lillibridge of Marshalltown alleges her arm was bruised by Officer Juan Tejada of the Marshalltown Police Department. This photo is included in the federal lawsuit she filed against the police department and city of Marshalltown.

A Marshalltown woman has filed suit against three members of the Marshalltown Police Department and the city.

Holli Lynn Lillibridge, 47, who is the spouse of a defendant in a 2019 high-profile Marshall County court case, alleged she was assaulted in a court facility when an officer attempted to execute a search warrant for her cell phone.

The federal lawsuit was filed Wednesday in the Southern District Court of Iowa in Des Moines. It names Officer Juan Tejada, Capt. Brian Patterson, Chief of Police Mike Tupper and the city of Marshalltown as defendants.

Tupper said Monday he had not seen the lawsuit and would not comment.

City attorney Roger Schoell said Monday he had not seen the lawsuit and was not going to comment.

“Even if I had seen it, I am not going to comment on pending litigation,” he said.

The allegations

In the suit, Lillibridge said her civil rights were violated, including the right to be free from arrest without probable cause and free from excessive force.

On May 10, Lillibridge was with her husband Todd Lillibridge, who was on trial in courtroom two in the Max Building. They were with Todd’s attorneys Chad and Jennifer Frese of Marshalltown.

Tejada was also in the Max Building with a search warrant. He requested Marshall County Sheriff Office deputies ask Holli to step outside to see him.

Upon making contact with Holli, Tejada said he needed to speak with her about a matter.

Holli replied she did not have time because she was with her husband and the Freses, waiting for the afternoon’s proceedings to start.

Tejada allegedly said,”I understand that but this won’t take long.”

Holli said, “I don’t have time to do this now, and I am not going to speak to you unless I have my lawyers present and they are in the courtroom.”

Tejada persisted and read Holli material from the search warrant which was for her cell phone.

Supposedly, Holli pulled her cell phone out of her pocket to call her attorneys and lock the phone. When Tejada saw Holli using her phone, he allegedly tried to grab it out of her hands.

Holli turned away due to Tejada’s aggressive conduct. The officer allegedly grabbed her right arm around the bicep and grabbed the phone.

A photo submitted as an exhibit with the lawsuit shows dark bruising on Holli’s bicep.

When the encounter was over, Holli told Tejada she was going to file charges for what he did and she probably had bruises on her arm.

Holli then said Tejada assaulted her, and asked one of the officers in the Max Building if he saw the incident. She went back into courtroom two and Tejada left the building.

Before closing arguments in the case, Chad Frese told the court the attempted retrieval of Holli’s phone by Tejada was unlike anything he had seen before.

Holli later visited the emergency department at an Ames hospital due to pain caused by bruising on her arm.

She made a complaint about Tejada’s conduct to the Ames Police Department.

Holli told Ames police that she was assaulted, perhaps sexually, due to Tejada allegedly brushing against her chest when he was trying to execute the search warrant.

The rebuttal

Ames police told Holli she should make a complaint to the MPD.

Holli and Jennifer Frese went to the MPD on May 16 and met with Batterson to complain about Tejada’s actions.

Batterson told them Holli had lied about the incident, according to the federal lawsuit.

Later, Holli was charged with making a false report to authorities, third-degree harassment and interference with official acts.

The harassment charge stems from Holli allegedly taking pictures of Marshall County Attorney Jennifer Miller’s residence on May 4. Miller was an attorney prosecuting Todd for three counts of felony sex abuse, of which he was acquitted.

The interference with official acts stems from the execution of the search warrant to seize Holli’s cell phone to obtain the alleged photos of Miller’s residence.

Tejada signed both criminal complaints.

On May 22, Holli discovered a warrant had been issued for her arrest and turned herself in to the Marshall County Sheriff’s Office.

She pleaded not guilty to the charges which are simple misdemeanors. The plea was entered by Holli’s attorney Jennifer Frese, according to court documents.

The suit requests judgement against Tupper and the city in an amount which will fully and fairly compensates Holli for her physical, mental and emotional injuries and other damages allowed by law.

The suit also requests a jury trial.

Holli is scheduled to go on trial Jan. 9 in her criminal case to answer to the charges of making false statements, third-degree harassment and interference with official acts.

She is represented by the Freses.

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Contact Mike Donahey

at 641-753-6611 or

mdonahey@timesrepublican.com