Fresno Bee/Robert Rodriguez The family of Gerald Johnson, a 55-year-old Fresno man shot and killed by police in March, has filed a wrongful death claim against the City of Fresno. The claim, filed on Monday, alleges police used excessive force when trying to convince Johnson to get out of a broken-down…
Cara Bayles/Law 360 Wednesday, the Minnesota attorney general charged four former Minneapolis police officers for their roles in the murder of George Floyd, the black man whose death has sparked days of worldwide protests. Derek Chauvin, the officer filmed pressing his knee into Floyd’s neck while he begged for his life,…
In a still pending case, a California county and some of its medical providers have agreed to pay $5.1 million to the widow and son of a mentally ill man who died in jail while awaiting transfer to a state hospital. The man who died had cared for his family…
The parents and young son of 32-year-old Sean Arlt brought this case seeking justice and reforms from the Santa Cruz Police Department that mismanaged his psychotic episode, unnecessarily shooting and taking the life of this gentle and beloved man. …
As an integral part of the $5 million settlement from the tragic child abuse death of 3-year-old Kayleigh Slusher, the Napa Police Department has instituted major reforms. No longer will officers be allowed to ignore or fail to report suspected chil…
Fresno police officer Juan Avila shot Jaime Reyes, Jr. in the back as he fled police. Police recovered an unloaded stolen gun, wrapped in a plastic bag in his pocket. In addition to paying Jaime’s parents $2.2 million, the FPD agreed to change its Us…
The City of Livermore agreed to retrain all of its officers in addition to paying $150,000 to a young man who was slammed into a light pole by Officer Michael Busevac in 2013. Witnesses testified that the large officer swung the young man like a rag …
After week one of a ten-week trial, Haddad & Sherwin achieved the largest wrongful death settlement in a civil rights case in California history – $8.3 million – plus statewide reforms to protect all inmates from illegal healthcare by Corizon Health,…
Police in the Bay Area have routinely pointed their guns at all occupants in a car for any “high risk” traffic stop where they have reason to believe the car may be stolen. But many times, the car is not stolen, or police rush to judgment to hold i…
Achieved a sweeping settlement protecting the free speech rights of public school teachers and requiring a local school district to provide comprehensive training to protect students and staff from discrimination based on sexual orientation, race, ge…
