Manuel Vasquez, et al. v. Tony Rackauckas, et al.
Published: Jun. 11, 2011 | Result Date: May 10, 2011 | Filing Date: Jan. 1, 1900 |Case number: 8:09-cv-1090 Bench Decision – Injunctive Relief
Court
USDC Central
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Peter Bibring
(ACLU Foundation of Southern California)
Jacob S. Kreilkamp
(Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP)
Joseph J. Ybarra
(Halpern May Ybarra Gelberg LLP)
Laura D. Smolowe
(Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP)
Defendant
S. Frank Harrell
(Lynberg & Watkins)
Facts
A class action was filed against Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas and the Orange Police Dept. alleging civil rights violations for illegally placing residents under a gang injunction. Residents of Orange County complained that they were pulled into the dragnet of gang injunctions without any findings of fact to determine whether they were actually gang participants. Rackauckas sued for injunctions against alleged members of an Orange street gang, who were later dismissed before they had a chance to dispute the allegations that they were members of any gang. After the Orange County Superior Court entered judgment by default against the gang, Rackaukas served the injunction obtained by default on the same individuals he had earlier dismissed from the case.
Result
U.S. District Judge Valerie Baker Fairbank held that Rackauckas and the Dept. deprived plaintiffs "of their constitutionally protected liberty interests without adequate procedural protections" in enforcing anti-gang injunctions against plaintiffs, and enjoined them from enforcing the gang injunction against plaintiffs.
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