As deputies had been closing in on a pursuit suspect after a violent, crash-filled chase throughout Southern California, Adrian Cruz sat at a cease mild together with his household. The suspect slammed into their automobile, and inside seconds, Cruz alleges, Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies had been slamming his head into the asphalt.
On Wednesday, Cruz and his household filed a lawsuit in opposition to L.A. County outlining a sequence of allegations, together with false arrest, extreme drive and violation of his state civil rights.
After the suspect crashed into Cruz’s automobile after which right into a Hacienda Heights fuel station on the tail finish of a Nov. 9 chase that spanned Orange and Los Angeles counties, deputies opened hearth, all whereas information helicopters broadcast the pursuit on dwell tv.
When Cruz acquired out of his automobile to attempt to get his spouse and son to security, he alleges, deputies tackled him to the bottom, beat him and put him into handcuffs for about 45 minutes whereas his household watched, confused and terrified.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Division has not had an opportunity to evaluate the criticism and doesn’t touch upon pending litigation, a spokesperson mentioned in an e mail.
The hourlong, high-speed pursuit began in Fullerton about 4:45 p.m. when law enforcement officials noticed a black Honda Civic commit a visitors violation. Once they tried to tug the motive force over, he sped off with officers in pursuit.
Johnny Anchondo, 32, of Moreno Valley is accused of main police and sheriff’s deputies on a wild chase, crashing into police cruisers and, at one time, operating right into a Whittier dwelling, grabbing the keys to a pickup to proceed the chase with the stolen automobile.
In response to the lawsuit, Cruz was stopped at a pink mild in his automobile together with his spouse, Amanda Sainz, and their son at Hacienda Boulevard and Gale Avenue when Anchondo crashed into them.
After that first affect, Cruz mentioned, he felt one other crash as deputies rammed patrol automobiles into the suspect’s car.
Deputies then started to fireplace into the suspect’s automobile.
In response to the swimsuit, Cruz, “promptly jumped out of his car to help his spouse.”
It was then that deputies “out of the blue tackled and violently started to punch [Cruz] in his head whereas concurrently grabbing his head and smashing it to the bottom,” in accordance with the lawsuit.
Deputies allegedly held Cruz down whereas his spouse and son ran to security.
Cruz was then held in a squad automobile, handcuffed, for about 45 minutes, with out deputies telling him why.
The swimsuit alleges Cruz “was an harmless bystander, posed no instant menace of loss of life or severely bodily damage, and violated no legal guidelines.”
Cruz was launched, however the swimsuit alleges deputies tried to cowl up the incident by “offering false testimony” and “getting ready or authorizing or approving false police stories.”
After the pursuit, a spokesperson for the Sheriff’s Division informed KCAL that Cruz was detained as a result of he had refused to get out of the road of fireplace.
In response to the swimsuit, Cruz suffered a number of bruises and cuts to his face, head and physique.
