Facts

In the early morning of July 3, 2002, plaintiff Rina Shotland, 75, was at home with her 14-year-old granddaughter, Michelle Yacobov and her son, Rafi Shotland.

The family was woken up by plain-clothed detectives from the Torrance Police Department Vice and Narcotics division, including Martin Vukotic and Hector Bermudez. Also present were other members of the Torrance Police Department and members of U.S. Customs. The police arrived at the Shotland residence to secure the location until a search warrant could be obtained under the alleged exigent circumstances that an alleged co-conspirator had been arrested and someone had alerted the occupants of the home of this fact. A search warrant was issued several hours later and officers seized marijuana, cash and over 18,000 ecstasy pills. As a result, Rafi Shotland was arrested.

Rina Shotland and her granddaughter, Michelle Yacobov sued the city of Torrance and Detectives Vukotic and Bermudez for Fourth Amendment rights violations. Rina Shotland moved overseas for unknown reasons and did not testify at trial.

PLAINTIFFS' CONTENTIONS:
The plaintiffs claimed they were forced without food and water and prevented from taking prescription medication or using the bathroom for 12 hours during the raid. They claimed they were ordered to sit on the living room couch in their nightclothes for the entirety of the raid.

DEFENDANTS' CONTENTIONS:
The defendants claimed Bermudez and Vukotic's actions were justified under exigent circumstances that allow for a warrantless entry.

Damages

The plaintiffs sought $5 million in compensatory damages and $10 in punitive damages for being woken up in the middle of the night by the officers, who put handguns to their heads and forced the residents to be without necessities for 12 hours.

Result

The jury returned a verdict for the defendants and awarded no damages.

Deliberation

15 minutes