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Jury decision over officer's duty to intervene sparks debate over new laws and police policies
A Bay Area jury has found a Richmond police officer failed to intervene and stop what jurors believe was excessive force by a Contra Costa County Sheriff’s deputy during a traffic stop. The civil court verdict, decided upon in March, calls for the alleged victim, Ricardo Hernandez, to receive more than $500,000 for the 2018 incident. A judge still has to enter a judgment.
RICHMOND, Calif. - A federal judge has approved a settlement forcing the city of Richmond to pay more than $500,000 to a man beaten by a deputy during a traffic stop.
U.S. Magistrate Alex Hse on Tuesday ruled in favor of plaintiff Ricardo Hernandez and against police officer Brandon Hodges.
The civil judgment stems from what happened on May 5, 2018: Police believed that Hernandez had been riding in a stolen a car.
Contra Costa County Sheriff's Deputy Brandon Battles struck Hernandez several times with a flashlight and pointed a gun at his head.
But Hernandez's lawyer, Fulvio Cajina, sued Hodges -- a Richmond police officer who was there that night -- for failing to intervene and stop Battles from using excessive force.
"No one, including officers from Richmond PD did anything to stop him shows that they’re liable for this conduct," Cajina said in an earlier interview.
Contra Costa County settled the same case for more than $260,000.
Police use of force has been highly scrutinized across the county, but recently so have officers who fail to intervene or report excessive force incidents involving fellow officers.
New laws in numerous states now require law enforcement officers to step in when witnessing unnecessary actions or else they too may be held responsible for any harm caused to a person.
Brooks Jarosz is an investigative reporter for KTVU. Email him at brooks.jarosz@fox.com and follow him on Facebook and Twitter: @BrooksKTVU