News
Litigation
Apr. 23, 1999
Suit Alleges Riverside Police Used Excessive Force
RIVERSIDE - When Otha Lee Tucker was pulled over by Riverside police last year on suspicion of carjacking, officers allege the 15-year-old began running and kept his hands around his waistband. Police, fearing for their lives, opened fire on Tucker, killing him.
In the latest excessive-force allegation against the Riverside Police Department, Tucker's mother, Lillie Young, has filed a lawsuit against the department and city, alleging that officers violated the teen-ager's civil rights when they shot and killed him.
The suit, filed March 25 in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, contends that the officers "failed to exercise due care" in carrying out their duties by using excessive force on Tucker that resulted in his death May 14, 1998. Tucker v. City of Riverside, 2:99CV03123. A trial date has not been set.
"This was definitely excessive force, given this young man's situation," said Young's attorney, Newport Beach sole practitioner Milton C. Grimes.
Riverside Supervising Deputy City Attorney Gregory Priamos said the Police Department and Riverside County district attorney's office found no evidence of wrongdoing in their investigation of the shooting.
"A thorough and comprehensive investigation has been conducted, and it has been determined that the officers acted appropriately," Priamos said.
The suit, which does not specify a dollar amount, also contends that the city negligently hired the officers and failed to properly train, supervise, monitor and discipline them. A claim against the city was filed Nov. 9 and rejected the following day.
According to a police report of the incident, Tucker was shot by officers Cliff Mason and Ron Whitt after the teen-ager refused to stop running after being ordered to do so and had his hands around his waistband. Tucker was not armed when he was killed.
Police suspected that Tucker carjacked a minivan at gunpoint from a 61-year-old woman and her father outside a Moreno Valley restaurant. After hearing radio broadcasts about the incident, Mason and Whitt noticed a van on the freeway matching the description. They attempted to pull it over, but the driver, later identified as Tucker, accelerated and attempted to evade the officers. He then pulled off the freeway, but lost control of the minivan, according to police reports reviewed by the district attorney's office.
Tucker climbed from the driver's window and ran from the officers, "keeping both hands in his waistband area," reports state. He approached the freeway onramp, and turned his body to the left. Mason, believing the teen-ager was armed and about to shoot him, fired once.
Tucker then continued to run, and officers chased him into a dark ravine. The young man got down on his stomach in a prone position, but his right hand was hidden under his waist. When officers ordered him to show his hands, Tucker did not comply.
The reports then state that Tucker tried to roll over and pulled his hand toward the officers. Fearing that Tucker had a gun hidden in his waistband, Mason and Whitt fired the shots that killed him.
Relatives told detectives that Tucker often kept his hands near his waist because he wore baggy pants.
Plaintiffs' attorney Grimes said the officers had "many other options" besides shooting Tucker.
"I've done enough criminal cases to know that what [Tucker] did didn't justify him being shot," the attorney said. "The officers weren't faced with the barrel of a gun. They could have taken cover or given him a chance to raise his hands."
Priamos maintained that the officers are in the clear.
"There has been no finding that the actions of the officers translate into criminal liability. We will vigorously defend their actions."
#259497
Jason Armstrong & Sean Windle
Daily Journal Staff Writer
For reprint rights or to order a copy of your photo:
Email
jeremy@reprintpros.com
for prices.
Direct dial: 949-702-5390
Send a letter to the editor:
Email: letters@dailyjournal.com