Sounds like an honest mistake, to me. After all, mops do bear a striking resemblance to "sniper" rifles. </sarcasm>
Posted on 07/20/2005 8:49:43 AM PDT by holymoly
Man who was shot by deputies during a Harbor Gateway shootout gets $70,000 for his injuries.
A roofer mistakenly shot by sheriff's deputies during a chaotic gunbattle in Harbor Gateway last year has been awarded $70,000.
The county Claims Board approved the settlement on Monday for Ricardo Oliva, who was holding a mop while working atop a building. Deputies suspected he might be a sniper preparing to shoot them.
"He was very lucky and gives daily blessings to himself and his family that his life was spared," said Oliva's attorney, Steven Lerman. "He is a good guy and was basically in the wrong place at the wrong time."
A day after the March 31, 2004, shooting, Sheriff's Department officials called the shooting of Oliva an "unfortunate accident" at the conclusion of a chase in which the driver jumped out of his car and began firing at deputies with an assault weapon.
Deputies had been following Salvador Mosqueda, 32, from Carson after his mother said he was suicidal and had threatened his girlfriend. On Normandie Avenue at Torrance Boulevard, he began shooting at officers with a rifle capable of firing 100 rounds in a minute.
Deputies returned fire and killed him.
Sheriff's officials admitted from the beginning that three deputies who heard the shots but could not see the gunfire from the other side of a building confused roofers atop Melody Liquor for gunmen.
They fired, wounding Oliva.
"The sheriff's deputies, believing Mr. Oliva was a sniper involved in the shooting that had just occurred, fired at him, striking him twice in the arm," the Claims Board report said.
"After he was removed from the roof, the sheriff's deputies learned that he was a roofer and was using a long-handled hot mop on the roof."
The Claims Board report, written by Assistant County Counsel Roger H. Granbo, said that although the person on the roof with a mop could have been perceived as a threat, a jury "could find that the sheriff's deputies' actions were unreasonable under the circumstances."
The settlement, the report said, would save litigation costs and avoid a larger payout.
Lerman called the deputies' actions a "comedy of errors"
"He was a victim of inappropriate conduct by the sheriff's deputies," Lerman said. "He still has scars and difficulty with his arm."
Sounds like an honest mistake, to me. After all, mops do bear a striking resemblance to "sniper" rifles. </sarcasm>
70K is all he gets? If the woman in the nexy cubicle desides she wants more money all she has to do is say i touched her ass and she gets much more than 70k.
You're right. Pretty meager settlement.
...and they should make those deputies carry mops.
He should also get a judgment to slap those dumbass deputies in the butt with a hot tar-loaded mop!
Tar-babies are people, too!
He had a crappy lawyer to get such a small settlement with a slam dunk case like this.
Yeah, the whole thing is cracking me up.
Another lesson to teach our children...Never, never, never, whatever you do, pick up a mop!! Danger, danger, danger. For crying out loud...someone sure took their stupid pills that day!
Shot twice while mopping asphalt ? 'sprobably worth $500 K.
What state do you live in?
No mention of whether the deputies still have their job. They should be charged. Did they see him firing his mop?
No kidding. $30,000 to his lawyer, $10,000 for time off work, $20,000 for medical bills.
This guy deserved another zero at the end of the settlement.
Boys with toys.
You are correct.
He should have gotten much more.
70K is what getting shot is worth? Thats b*llsh*t! I am no fan of frivolous law suits, but this one ain't! I am not sure about the extent of the injuries suffered, but I'd have held out for 10x more..
That is seriously messed up.
Gotta send this to the husband of a friend. He's a roofer too.
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