Judge won't yank suit claiming troopers urinated on woman

A woman who claims Pennsylvania state police pepper-sprayed her, doused her with cold water, then urinated on her will have her day in court.

A federal judge ruled Monday that Derena Marie Madison, 40, can proceed with her lawsuit against five troopers who had sought to have the case dismissed.

Madison, of Fayette County, was arrested Feb. 3, 2011, during a traffic stop near Pittsburgh. Though the vehicle belonged to her, she wasn't at the wheel. Troopers arrested the driver and charged him with driving under the influence.

When one trooper threatened to have the car towed, Madison "protested," court papers say. Troopers arrested her and charged her with public drunkenness and disorderly conduct.

In handcuffs and manacles, Madison was taken to the Uniontown barracks, where troopers allegedly shackled her feet to a bench. Madison alleges that Trooper Chad Weaver blasted her with pepper spray twice in the face "for the purposes of torturing her," according to the suit.

Madison said that when she called for help, several troopers carried her outside, dropped her in the snow, and, while she was still restrained, doused her with water. She said that she blacked out and that when she came to, she smelled urine on her. "She believes that while she was unconscious, one or more of the defendants urinated on her," the judge's memo states.

Troopers had filed a motion to dismiss, arguing Madison's claims were barred by "sovereign immunity," a provision in Pennsylvania law that allows certain conduct by law enforcement officials if done "within the scope of employment."

U.S. District Judge Gary L. Lancaster rejected the motion, finding that the troopers, if guilty, would not have been acting within the scope of their employment.

Madison was found guilty of public drunkenness and disorderly conduct after the February arrest.