A business owner who sued for retaliation and malicious prosecution after she was taken into police custody following a parking dispute in Pittsburgh has won a $450,000 jury verdict against Allegheny County.

Marsha Simonds of Upper St. Clair, whose family in 2016 bought a parking lot in the 4700 block of Murray Avenue in the city’s Greenfield section, was charged with disorderly conduct in the summer of 2019.

At the time, the entrance to District Judge James Hanley’s office was in the lot, and for the first three years the Simonds family owned it, court visitors parked there without permission.

Simonds’ company sued the building’s owner. After it was sold, the new owners filed a claim in 2018 against Simonds alleging her company was “aggressively” trying to stop all access to the court, harassing tenants and attempting to tow vehicles parked there.

On Aug. 22, 2019, an Allegheny County Common Pleas Court judge signed an order allowing Hanley’s office to lease two spaces per month to be used for court business. The rest of the spots, according to Simonds were leased to a UPMC office or used by her company.

But five days later, the matter came to a head when police were called to the parking lot by both Hanley’s office and Simonds.

That day, a City of Pittsburgh employee who had court business parked in a non-designated space, and Simonds asked him to move.

He refused, and Simonds entered Hanley’s office to complain.

It was then, her lawsuit claimed, that Christine Boyer, who worked for Hanley, immediately waved her off and yelled at her.

Both women called 911.

When police arrived, they ignored Simonds in the parking lot and went into Hanley’s office, her lawsuit said.

A short time later, Simonds claimed, Pittsburgh police Officer Adam Thimons forcefully handcuffed Simonds on the hood of her car and placed her in a patrol vehicle.

In his police report, Thimons wrote that Boyer told him Simonds refused to leave.

“I attempted to detain Simonds on scene pending further investigation. First, I stated to Simonds, ‘Turn around.’ Simonds asked, ‘Why?’ and then began backing away from me. Again, I stated to Simonds, ‘Turn around’ and ordered her to place her hands behind her back,” Thimons wrote.

“Simonds again refused my verbal commands. After multiple orders, I held Simonds’ left arm and turned her around as she placed her hands behind her back. As I attempted to detain her, Simonds began repeatedly screaming, ‘Call Cmdr. Herrmann’ as she continued to pull away from me.”

After about 30 minutes, Simonds was released, but she later was charged by summons with two summary counts of disorderly conduct.

A district judge — not Hanley — dismissed one count but found Simonds guilty of the other following a hearing.

Simonds appealed to Allegheny County Common Pleas Court. The judge hearing her case granted a defense motion to throw out the charge.

Three weeks later, Simonds filed a federal civil rights lawsuit naming the city, county, Hanley, Boyer, Thimons and three other police officers.

Damage award ‘speaks volumes’

When the case went to trial last week before U.S. District Judge J. Nicholas Ranjan, only Boyer and Thimons remained as defendants.

On Tuesday, the jury ruled in Simonds’ favor on claims of First Amendment retaliation, negligent infliction of emotional distress and malicious prosecution against Boyer but ruled in favor of Thimons, finding he did not use excessive force.

The panel awarded Simonds $50,000 in compensatory damages and $400,000 in punitive damages.

Those amounts will be paid by Allegheny County, which is self-insured.

The county would not say if it intends to appeal.

A spokesman for Allegheny County Common Pleas Court declined to comment Thursday, as did a spokeswoman for Allegheny County.

Attorney Todd Hollis, who represented Simonds, noted the amount of the punitive damages awarded by the jury.

“I think that speaks volumes for how the jury viewed Boyer’s actions as they were presented at trial,” he said. “We’re pleased with the voice the jury gave to this case.”

Hollis said he is evaluating Ranjan’s decision in dismissing the other defendants and whether to appeal.

In 2023, Hanley’s office moved to a different location a few blocks away on Murray Avenue. Boyer continues to work for him. Simonds and her family continue to own the parking lot.

Simonds as defendant

Simonds, who owns a company called Staff Source, has been involved in other litigation in the federal court system.

She and her mother, Anna Zaydenberg, who operates ComForCare Home Care, were ordered by a federal judge in 2022 to pay more than $2.4 million in overtime back wages and damages to 345 workers in the Pittsburgh area.

U.S. District Judge Christy Criswell Weigand ruled in favor of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division, which filed a case against Zaydenberg and Simonds under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The government alleged the women would pay employees of ComForCare from checks issued by ComForCare and Staff Source — with both showing less than 40 hours of work each week so that no overtime was paid, even when employees worked 50 hours or more.

Court records show the judgment was paid as of May 25, 2023.

There is still a pending class-action lawsuit in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court on the matter, which is scheduled for trial on Feb. 9.

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