Family Of Woman Killed By Fort Lee Police Sues Borough, Police

Editor’s note: This is a breaking news story. It will be updated as statements are received. Some details of this story may be disturbing to some individuals.

The family of Victoria Lee filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Fort Lee and its police department, alleging that officers used excessive force and unlawfully broke down her apartment door before fatally shooting her. 

The incident occurred nearly two years ago on July 28, 2024, when Lee’s brother called 911 for an ambulance to assist with her mental health emergency. According to released phone tapes, Lee told the dispatcher he did not want police to come; he was told law enforcement would be sent. When police arrived, Officer Tony Pickens Jr. shot and killed Lee, 25, within minutes. A grand jury declined to file criminal charges against him last year.

In a Tuesday press release, Lee’s mother said they did what “any family member would do”: they called 911 to get her help. In the 61-page complaint, their attorneys said that “the price of asking for help during a mental health episode should not be a death sentence.”

“Victoria was a thoughtful, kind, and hard-working young woman who cared deeply for her friends and family. She was the light of our lives, and she was wrongfully taken from us. We are pursuing this civil rights suit to demand full accountability and to ensure that no other family has to endure this unimaginable pain,” said Kyungyong Lee, father of Victoria Lee.  

The suit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey. It brings 14 counts, including excessive force and warrantless entry under federal civil rights law, disability discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act, and state claims of wrongful death, assault, battery and negligence. Named defendants are Pickens, four other officers, and the borough, and seeks compensatory and punitive damages and a jury trial.

The complaint alleges that Lee was not a threat and that officers were aware. Lee was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, the suit said, and was holding a small knife. Her brother had notified the 911 dispatcher that she was holding the object but that she was not “threatening” anyone; he also said she was having a “mental crisis.”

When officers arrived at the scene, they can be heard on body-worn camera video saying, “Who wants to go less lethal, who wants to go lethal?” Pickens opted for “lethal.”

On the footage, Pickens can be heard saying, “Who’s dealing with the mental health crisis? Who’s having the nervous breakdown right now?” and “Who’s the problem, your sister or you?” Lee can also be heard saying, “Shoot me if you want to,” to which an officer replied, “We don’t want to shoot you; we want to help you,” the complaint said.

At the moment Pickens breaks the apartment door down, the complaint alleges, Lee’s mother “was gripping Victoria’s left wrist,” restraining the knife. Lee held a plastic water jug in her other hand. Pickens then shot Lee in the chest. 

The entire encounter lasted three minutes. Lee’s family claims that officers abandoned de-escalation techniques and voiced their fear that police would kill her. At the time of Lee’s death, the borough was in the process of implementing Arrive Together, a state crisis response program that pairs mental health professionals and police on certain emergency calls. The program was eventually launched the year following her death.

Lee’s story followed the similar killings of Najee Seabrooks and Andrew Washington in 2023, two men who were also fatally shot by police during mental health crises in New Jersey. Their deaths spurred a statewide push to remove law enforcement from such calls that culminated in January 2024, when former Gov. Phil Murphy signed the Seabrooks-Washington Community-Led Crisis Response Act. 

The law created a community crisis response pilot program and set aside $12 million for six counties: Camden, Essex, Hudson, Mercer, Middlesex and Passaic. Bergen County, where Fort Lee is located, was not among them.

“Individuals experiencing a mental health episode or crisis deserve to access services without the threat of violence, and their families should be able to call for help without the fear that such a call will end in their loved one’s death at the hands of police,” said Amelia Green, a partner with Neufeld Scheck Brustin Hoffmann & Freudenberger, the firm representing Lee’s family. Attorneys there are also representing Washington’s family in a similar suit.

Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich and Fort Lee Police Department Chief Matthew Hintze could not be immediately reached for comment. When asked about a rally held on the one-year anniversary of Lee’s death, Sokolich told NorthJersey.com that “There are many people who have been profoundly impacted as a result of what happened on July 28th.”

“I’m talking about family members of Victoria Lee. I’m talking about Officer Pickens. I’m talking about his family. I just think people need to understand that there are many families that are impacted by this,” said Sokolich.