One of New York City’s top doctors has filed a lawsuit against his white neighbour over the man “violently water spraying” his dinner guests at his home in Forest Hills in Queens.
Dr Yves Duroseau, who is the head of Lenox Hill’s emergency department, hosted a dinner party with his wife last year on 17 September 2022 as a surprise for his sister, Rosevony Duroseau.
The small guest list consisted of other New York elites; all but one attendee of the dinner were of African-American, Haitian-American, Latin-American and Asian-American heritage.
The nine-course dinner was set up in their back garden with catering from chef Vanessa Cantave, the 2011 winner of the TV show Rocco’s Dinner Party.
What was meant to be a celebration turned into a “humiliating” ordeal that was “reminiscent of 1960s Birmingham, Alabama, when White law enforcement officers used fire hoses to douse, assault and batter African Americans participating in civil rights demonstrations in an attempt to get them to comply and disperse,” the lawsuit said.
The first incident that rocked the birthday dinner was when a white female neighbour, referred to in the lawsuit as “Jane Doe”, turned up in Dr Duroseau’s foyer around 9.50pm “without permission” with a German Shepherd. Guests and catering staff were “fearful that the dog would attack and seriously injure them as it appeared menacing and aggressive.”
The woman demanded that the music playing in their garden be turned down.
Yves Duroseau was the first physician in the US to receive a COVID vaccine in 2020— (Scott Heins/Getty Images)
The doctor told Jane Doe that they were having a birthday dinner, but that it would be finishing soon before asking her to leave his property, according to the lawsuit.
After returning to the garden, guests continued socialising in the garden.
Chaos ensued again when Dr Duroseau’s neighbour, Marcus Rosebrock, whose backyard abuts the Duroseau’s property, allegedly got his hose and began spraying water at all the partygoers.
Dr Duroseau’s home is located in the leafy suburb of Forest Hills, a private community in Queens— (Wikimedia Commons)
Many guests claim in the lawsuit that the hose injured them as the pressure was “extremely powerful and stinging in nature” and was done in “racist character.”
He aimed his hose at the partygoers “with increased water pressure and violently water sprayed them in the face and body, drenching them.”
He also aimed at another guest trying to calmly talk to him and a caterer who was removing dishes.
The lawsuit is seeking justice for the assault and battery by Mr Rosebrock and trespassing by Jane Doe.
The nine-course dinner was catered by Vanessa Cantave, the season 11 winner of Rocco’s Dinner Party— (Bravo/NBCUniversal via Getty Images)
The lawsuit also seeks justice for intentional infliction of emotional distress and violation of the Admin Code of the City of NY 8-101 by both defendants.
The Duroseaus called 911 to report the incident, Derek Sells, the attorney for the case, told The Daily Beast.
Mr Rosebrock is still living next door, but the Duroseaus “have had no meaningful interactions with him since the incident,” according to Mr Sells.
Mr Rosebrock, a German national, has yet to file a response to the Duroseaus’ complaint.
On Sunday, his attorney Brandon Gillard, told The Daily Beast that his client’s side of the story will be told in court.
“Mr Rosebrock denies any of the allegations in the complaint and rejects any characterization that he is racist, or [that] his actions were racially motivated,” Mr Gillard said.
Mr Gillard also said, that since the lawsuit was filed Mr Rosebrock “is now receiving harassing and menacing phone calls, causing him to fear for his and his family’s safety,” reports the New York Post
