A Wisconsin woman who says Rochester police pegged the wrong person in a counterfeit-cash case is now taking the city and several officers to federal court. Her personal-injury lawsuit, first filed in Olmsted County and later shifted to federal court, claims officers violated her constitutional rights when she was misidentified as a suspect and briefly jailed. The case seeks monetary damages and has added fresh fuel to the ongoing scrutiny of Rochester police procedures.
According to Justia Dockets & Filings, the case, listed as 0:2026cv01645, was removed from state court to the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota. A notice of removal and an answer were both filed on Feb. 26, 2026, formally parking the dispute on a federal calendar before a U.S. district judge. The docket shows lawyers in place for both sides, signaling that the fight is now squarely in civil-litigation territory.
What's alleged
The complaint describes how officers allegedly zeroed in on plaintiff Susan Girdhari after a Sept. 1, 2025, call from a Circle K in southeast Rochester about suspicious currency. One bill was reportedly ripped in half, while another was said to have “movie prop use only” printed on it, according to the Post Bulletin. That reporting also notes Eau Claire County jail records show Girdhari was booked at 12:20 p.m. on Oct. 10, 2025, and released at 4:53 p.m. the same day. The article points out that the lawsuit does not identify specific evidence that directly ties her to the counterfeit bills.
Who's named and court posture
The federal docket lists the City of Rochester, along with officers Spencer Peterson, Nicholas Kruger, and Josiah Duit as defendants, and shows that the city and those named officers have filed an answer to the complaint, according to Justia Dockets & Filings. The defendants’ notice of removal is what shifted the matter out of Olmsted County District Court and into federal court.
Legal claims and context
Girdhari is seeking $50,000 in damages and alleges Rochester officers violated her constitutional rights, the Post Bulletin reports. The same outlet notes that prosecutor Amanda Grayson confirmed the related criminal complaint has been dismissed. The civil case lands at a tense moment for the department: the complaint and local reporting state that the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension identified Officer Josiah Duit in a separate March 11, 2026, officer-involved shooting that left a man dead, a detail that has factored into public scrutiny of Rochester police.
What’s next
The lawsuit is still in its early federal-court phase, with initial pleadings on file and scheduling orders yet to come. The judge is expected to set deadlines for motions and discovery, and if the case survives any early efforts to throw it out, both sides will trade evidence and testimony. That could mean depositions of city officials and officers or, depending on how the litigation unfolds, settlement talks. For now, what began as a local criminal inquiry has morphed into a federal civil clash over alleged constitutional violations.
