We helped our two clients, the children of Humberto (“Beto”) Martinez, settle their claims for their father’s wrongful chokehold death for $7.3 million plus police reforms. This local case involved Pittsburg police officers’ use of a carotid hold and choke hold, and other highly injurious force, on video, while Beto…
This local case involved Pittsburg police officers’ use of a carotid hold and choke hold, and other highly injurious force, on video, while Beto Martinez can be heard saying, “I can’t breathe!” much like the more publicized cases of George Floyd and Eric Garner. On the afternoon of July 26,…
San Jose Mercury News/Nate Gartell PITTSBURG — The city has agreed to pay $7.3 million to settle a lawsuit by the family of a man who was killed after an officer placed him in a carotid hold for 50 seconds, using a controversial technique that has since been widely banned…
San Francisco Chronicle/Bob Egelko A federal appeals court on Thursday allowed the family of a Pittsburg man to sue the city and its police over a fatal struggle in which an officer choked the man and two officers knelt on his back until he lost consciousness. … [In July, 2016, officers…
KQED News/Sukey Lewis A federal appeals court in San Francisco is considering whether six Pittsburg police officers can be held liable for killing a man during a violent arrest in 2016. At the center of the officers’ appeal is a legal doctrine called qualified immunity that broadly shields public officials…
Buffalo, New York, police recently shoved Martin Gugino, a 75-year-old man who was protesting the murder of George Floyd, knocking Mr. Gugino to the ground and causing a head injury that immediately began to bleed and required hospitalization. Then a gang of officers callously walked past Mr. Gugino as he…
Today, in response to community uprising over Minneapolis police officers’ murder of George Floyd by restraint asphyxia, Donald Trump tweeted “when the looting starts, the shooting starts.” Mr. Trump is promoting the use of deadly force in response to property crimes, which is blatantly unconstitutional. The United States Constitution prohibits…
This was George Floyd’s plea last night to Minneapolis Police Officers as they held him face down, with one knee on his torso and one knee on his neck. News reports show the officers held Mr. Floyd down for over eight minutes, keeping an officer’s knee pressing on his torso…