On Orange is the New Black, Dascha Polanco plays pregnant Litchfield inmate Dayanara Diaz.
So perhaps it’s fitting that in real life, Polanco has problems with young people that could land her behind bars.
According to Page Six, Polanco was arrested in July for allegedly assaulting a 17-year-old New Yorker named Michelle Cardona.
The tabloid recently obtained court papers showing that Cardona claims the attack happened inside Polanco’s home:
“Ms. Cardona observed the defendant strike Ms. Cardona about the face and head with a closed fist at least three times, pull Ms. Cardona’s hair, and strike Ms. Cardona’s arms with the defendant’s hands and nails,” the documents state.
Polanco appeared in court on Thrusday (which happened to also be her birthday) for a hearing related to the charges. Her trial is set to begin next month.
Polanco’s lawyers issued a statement claiming that Cardona is simply trying to extort money from their client:
“It’s a setup to try to get money and it was tape-recorded,” says attorney Gerald Lefcourt. “This young woman was trying to extort her to drop the case. We’re confident the charges will be dismissed.”
Unfortunately, this isn’t the actress’ first controversy this year.
Back in February, Polanco was criticized by animal rights groups after she allegedly dropped her adult cats at a pet shelter so that she could replace them with kittens.
Sounds like all that time spent with fake convicts is starting to have an effect on Dascha!