BONNIE v. CITY OF POMONA
Filed 4/11/06
CERTIFIED FOR PUBLICATION
IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT
DIVISION SEVEN
| BONNIE HERNANDEZ, as Co-administrator, etc., et al., Plaintiffs and Appellants, v. CITY OF POMONA et al., Defendants and Respondents. | B182437 (Los Angeles County Super. Ct. No. BC228397) |
APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County. R. Bruce Minto, Judge. Reversed.
Moreno, Becerra, Guerrero & Casillas, Danilo J. Becerra and Lizette V. Espinosa for Plaintiffs and Appellants.
Alvarez-Glasman & Colvin and Roger A. Colvin for Defendants and Respondents
The plaintiffs in this negligence action are the parents, wife, seven minor children and estate of George Hernandez who, while fleeing arrest, was shot 22 times by police officers of the City of Pomona. Defendants are the four officers involved in the shooting and the city.
Plaintiffs appeal from the judgment after the trial court sustained defendants' demurrer to their complaint. The issue is whether a federal jury's verdict in favor of a city and three of its police officers and the district court's judgment in favor of a fourth officer in a federal civil rights case precludes the same plaintiffs from bringing a negligence action in state court against the same defendants based on the same facts. Under the circumstances here we conclude it does not and reverse the judgment.
FACTS AND PROCEEDINGS BELOW
The Federal Civil Rights Action
Plaintiffs initially sued the police officers and the city in federal district court alleging causes of action for negligence under state law and violation of Hernandez's civil rights under federal law[1]--specifically the right under the Fourth Amendment to be free from â€
