August 18, 2025
Cierra Carroll is suing the New York Police Department, alleging that its operator classified the 911 call as a custody dispute instead of a kidnapping.
After calling the police to report her missing child and having them misclassify the call, 17-year-old Cierra Carroll, is suing the New York Police Department (NYPD) for $60 million for the alleged miscue that she says resulted in her child’s death.
According to the New York Daily News, Carroll said that the operator who took the 911 call treated a kidnapping by the child’s father as a custody dispute. That action did not classify it as a missing child incident, so the police did not take the appropriate steps to search for the 2-year-old child, she alleges.
“Montrell Williams should be here today if it wasn’t for the NYPD being neglectful in finding him,” Reverend Kevin McCall, who is representing the family, said at an Aug. 15 press conference outside the 40th Precinct in the Bronx. “No amount of money will bring him back. However, the NYPD has to be held responsible.”
Carroll reported to the police department on May 11 that the child’s father, 20-year-old Arius Williams, did not return Montrell at the time he was supposed to. She reportedly informed the police that she was worried about the child as Williams has a history of domestic violence and acting erratically.
Over the next several weeks, the family requested that the cops investigate the child’s disappearance. On June 11, Montrell’s body was discovered in the East River. Arius was subsequently charged with murder and is currently being held without bail as he awaits trial.
“NYPD officers misclassified the call as a custody dispute, failed to initiate a missing child investigation, failed to issue an Amber Alert, and took no immediate steps to locate or safeguard Montrell…delaying critical actions that could have prevented the child’s death,” the suit states.
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