Family of teenager handcuffed in New Jersey mall fight reaches settlement with police
BRIDGEWATER TOWNSHIP, N.J. -- The family of a teenager who was handcuffed during a brawl in a New Jersey mall in what the family calls a racist response has reached a settlement with Bridgewater Township Police.
Z'Kye Husain stood with his family and lawyers at the Bergen County NAACP on Thursday as they announced the resolution.
In February 2022, Z'Kye was standing up for another teen who was being bullied when he got into a fight at Bridgewater Commons Mall.
Bridgewater Police put Z'Kye, who was 14 years old at the time, in handcuffs while kneeling on him, while the other teen involved in the fight, who is of Colombian and Pakistani descent, sat nearby.
The family's lawyers say they will be offering police training sponsored by their law firm and by the NAACP to every police department in New Jersey.
"Z'Kye, I want you to know, your future is bright. Despite how those officers saw you, we see the God in you and we know you're going to do great things," said Ben Crump, the family's lawyer.
The amount of the settlement was not disclosed.
We reached out to Bridgewater Township Police for comment. They have not returned our calls.
