Can i sue the poloce department for being bias towards me cause i have a recond ?

The issue is whether the police had probable cause to arrest you and that depends on what the homeless man told the police you did.

Unless the reason for the arrest was because of you hitting the homeless guy, then your claim of bias means nothing. Put it in these terms: were you on probation? Were you on parole? Did you have an outstanding warrant? If any of these answers is yes, then you were arrested for a reason that has nothing to do with the homeless guy, so the only one you can blame is yourself. Here's the other thing to consider: If you were defending yourself, and the reason for your arrest was on the basis of your fight with the homeless guy, you'll get to prove that in court. If you win, then you might also be able to go after the police for wrongful arrest, but it will depend on the circumstances. To make it a "black-white" thing right out of the gate is foolish and irresponsible. Normal people don't get in fights with homeless guys (of any color). In fact, they normally don't engage them at all. You say you were asking the homeless guy for a light? Is that the truth or was something else going on? Who asks a homeless guy for a light? SERIOUSLY? WHO DOES THAT? I suggest that you consult with a criminal defense attorney before you go throwing around bias claims. If you truly have one, they can assist with it. I suspect that isn't actually the case, though. BTW, having a criminal record DOES make you subject to higher scrutiny by the police. It doesn't matter if you are black, white, yellow, purple, blue, or neon green. If you have a record and are involved in an incident that results in police investigation, your record will come up. Period. Get a criminal defense attorney.

Self defense may not give you the right to beat a guy up. Sounds like you need to hire a good criminal defense lawyer to fight the charges. If you are successful, then you can explore the possibility of suing the cops for wrongful arrest.

If you plead guilty or were found guilty you will not be successful on a false arrest case. You will need to appeal your conviction and win. There is also a statute of limitation issue regarding filing a notice of claim

You can always sue someone. The important question is: can you successfully sue them? The police just need probable cause to arrest you. That's it. While you have the right to defend yourself, you don't have the right to "beat him up" as you said. It makes me sick that some police officers think being black is probable cause to arrest. However, in your case, they'd probably be able to point to other objective, non-race based factors like a homeless guy who was "beat up" pretty bad. Also, if you have a record or were on probation or parole, that might have swayed who they believed when the responded to the scene. As far as suing the police, you have a couple obstacles in NY. One is that you have to be successful on the merits of your case. If you spent 8 months in Rikers, I'm guessing you either plead guilty or were found guilty. That would end your claim right there. The other obstacle is the 90-day notice of claim. If you let 8 months go by, the time likely passed. I'm not admitted in Federal courts. You "might" have a section 1983 civil rights claim. I'm guessing you're going to face similar obstacles because the officers can point to an objective, non-race basis for your arrest. But it won't hurt to google a civil rights firm in your area to find out for sure. If you're unsure where to turn, call the ACLU or NAACP. I'm sure they get these calls all the time & could point you in the right direction. I also changed the category to "civil rights" for you.

NO, you cannot sue the police department (successfully, at least) because they are "bias" against you. The police are bias against everybody with a criminal history.

All I can say is avoid talking to slick homeless people. It will get you in trouble. And there is always going to be a cop around. Just asking a homeless person for alight in a high crime area is probable cause to stop and frisk you, even if the city is doing away with stop and frisk. Anyone who knows the streets knows that there are slick "homeless" people all over the place that are really selling drugs or in the alternative acting as police informants. If you take more than a second to nod at them, it is probably probable cause. If you get into a fight with a homeless person--forget it, the police will want you punished. Because no one gets into a fight with a homeless person........