Founding Partner Eugene P. Ramirez, Orange County Partner Scott Wm. Davenport, and Los Angeles Senior Counsel Darin L. Wessel recently obtained a summary judgment order on behalf of their clients, a Southern California city and multiple police officers.
According to the initial complaint, in November 2020 plaintiff’s ex-boyfriend stole multiple guns from her apartment and began walking around her complex shooting them indiscriminately. When police officers arrived at the complex, they found the ex-boyfriend walking away from the apartment holding a high powered assault rifle while the plaintiff yelled to officers that he had shot her. Officers opened fire and shot the ex-boyfriend, leading to his death.
The mother of the ex-boyfriend eventually filed a wrongful death lawsuit in federal court under 42 USC section 1983 against the officers and city, claiming they did not issue a warning before using deadly force.
Mr. Ramirez, Mr. Davenport, and Mr. Wessel submitted a Motion for Summary Judgment, which the District Court granted. The court ruled that the ex-boyfriend’s actions and lack of intent to drop his assault rifle led to a reasonable use of deadly force. Due to the rapid and dangerous nature of the event, no clear warning from officers was required to shoot. Furthermore, because no individual officer’s force was deemed unreasonable, the court found no liability for the City.
The write up on the ruling can be read in the Daily Journal here. The decision was another tremendous team effort by members of the firm’s Governmental Entity Liability Team and the Appellate Law Team.