Slain girl's mom files $30M lawsuit against DEA

San Antonio Express News ^ | 3/13/2003 | maro. robbins

[wildbill]

Slain girl's mom files $30 million lawsuit

Claiming federal agents had no reason to use deadly force against her daughter, the mother of a slain 14-year-old girl filed a lawsuit Wednesday against the two agents who she claims fired at Ashley Villarreal. The complaint seeks $30 million and potentially offers the most public review of the Feb. 9 encounter between the teenager and agents who were waiting to arrest her father, cocaine-trafficking suspect Joey Villarreal.

The case was filed in federal court a day after authorities asserted that Joey Villarreal knew about the stakeout and that his daughter was acting as a decoy when she drove along the street with her headlights off.

When investigators tried to stop her sedan, officials said, she rammed their unmarked vehicles and accelerated toward agents, who opened fire without being able to see who was at the wheel.

A lawyer for the girl's mother, Deborah De Luna Villarreal, dismissed this account as "the government laying out an alternate reality."

"I think there is a grave danger that reality is going to be distorted dramatically," said the attorney, Marynell Maloney. "How is a 14-year-old girl responsible to such a degree that she should be killed?"

The lawsuit is directed at two agents who, it asserts, are believed to have fired at the car: Bill Swierc and Jeff Kinnaman. The agents could not be reached for comment.

Authorities have not said who fired the fatal shot.

Maloney said a similar complaint against the agents' employer, the Drug Enforcement Administration, is in the works. Lawyers for Joey Villarreal have indicated they are preparing their own civil suit.

Should the case go to trial, it would offer possibly the most public review of the shooting at the intersection of South San Joaquin and Motes streets.

While the DEA and the San Antonio Police Department are separately examining the incident, it is unclear whether their findings will be released in detail.

A DEA spokesman, noting that the reviews still are under way, said it would be inappropriate for the agency to comment on the lawsuit.

The narrative described in the lawsuit says Ashley believed the agents were gang members. It also faults investigators for not seeing the girl climb into the car, emphasizing that minutes earlier she and a friend had put garbage cans on the stoop.

"This is a girl who's carrying out the trash, standing out there in the streetlight, and they're shooting her dead moments later," Maloney said. "It doesn't add up."

Described by Maloney as traumatized and grieving, Ashley's mother wasn't at a news conference held at the lawyer's office Wednesday.

Maloney said that, while the lawsuit seeks $10 million in actual damages and $20 million in punitive damages, what Ashley's mom wants most is to prove that her daughter was a victim.

"The numbers are really difficult to determine. What is the worth of human life?" Maloney said. "The main point is this thing shouldn't have happened."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- mrobbins@express-news.net

03/13/2003

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[dcwusmc]

So they say... but then they HAVE to make that claim despite eyewitness reports, or they'd be liable for murder charges, which they should each be facing. Their statements, as well as that of the U.S. Attorney are no more than self-serving roscoe designed to deflect close inspection of their indefensible position, just as ANY murder suspect might do.

[wildbill]

When I first posted this a few days ago I had no idea it would cause so much comment. I think it is instructive that the issues affect so many of us on this forum in so many different ways, such as:

1.Anti-drug war people see it as a result of a phony drug war gone bad which results in endless acts of oppression and errors on the part of the authorities.
2. "Law and order" folks believe that anything the police and federal agents do is permissable as long as they have the cover of line of duty.
3.Libertarians see these types of events along with with Ruby Ridge and Waco as government over-stepping its bounds with dire consequences for the Constitution and citizens.
4. Gun rights people get worried whenever it appears that a mistake might have been made with a gun.

Have I missed anyone? :-)

[dcwusmc]

Finally something which I can agree on with you. However, if you ever learn to think for yourself, you need not post any more emotional screeds. Give it a try someday. Maybe then the INFORMED won't always be on OUR side as it is now.

[dcwusmc]

I guess you missed the liberals who tend to follow the "Law-n-order" party line on this issue.

[Zon]

Roscoe's gone to lunch. He'll be back shortly.

[Zon]

Their statements, as well as that of the U.S. Attorney are no more than self-serving roscoe designed to deflect close inspection of their indefensible position...

From the link that Roscoe posted at 194:

"In adding details, the official account also raised new questions that officials declined to address. For instance, why would Villarreal stop to brazenly antagonize agents if he was in the process of fleeing to avoid arrest?

"And why did agents suspect Villarreal might be in the car driven by his daughter if he was seen driving away earlier?"
http://news.mysanantonio.com/story.cfm?xla=saen&xlb=180&xlc=962174

[dcwusmc]

Roger that. I would love to know which agency he works for. Either he's paid to troll and should be prosecuted along with his superiors or he surfs on taxpayer time and should be fired, then prosecuted. Either way is another horrendous MIS-use of MY money.

[dcwusmc]

Could it be that they kinda KNEW who was in the car and wanted to put a scare into her father by jacking HER up? And maybe it sorta went awry? Or maybe it went exactly the way they wanted it to go. Wouldn't be the first time the drug warriors sent a "message" that way. Maybe he was supposed to be a snitch that was getting out of line. Or maybe he wasn't paying his "protection" money on time. Roscoe'd know that, probably. Maybe he's the DEA's bookkeeper for extorted funds.

[Zon]

I think the DEA agents didn't know who was in the car because they weren't paying close enough attention and just assumed it was Joey Villarreal driving. When they realized who they had shot they likely figured they couldn't very well say they made a mistake because they weren't paying attention to who was in the car. Thus they claim to know full well who was driving the car and that there shoot was justified because the driver was trying to run them down.

[Zon]

there = their

[Not just another dumb blonde]

I agree that it's a very tragic situation. What alot of people here are missing the point on is...if daddy hadn't been known to traffic drugs, they wouldn't have been there in the first place. Put the initial blame where it belongs on the parents for being too stupid for words. They put their daughter in harms way. The dea is not perfect (after all they are human too) and if what they did was not according to protocol the law will take care of it. I'm really concerned that many here think that le is a four letter word. If I break the law, I know there's a consequence that goes with it. Fortunately, I have a great set of parents who set the best example, and I stress the word example.

[Gianni]

Informed discussion versus emotional screeds

You mean, "Refusal to answer a simple question," don't you?

When it comes to the jackets, why would the accounts of the police be more credible than the accounts of eyewitnesses who lived in the neighborhood? Do those people's lives and freedom depend on their story?

Two more posts, two more missed chances to answer me: Do you feel that the actions of the agents were appropriate given the situation?

[Gianni]

Internet forums such as FreeRepublic are a thinking man's resource

Well said, I only wish fewer non-thinkers found their way here as well.

[Roscoe]

they HAVE to make that claim

Begs question, no source.

[Roscoe]

why would the accounts of the police be more credible than the accounts of eyewitnesses who lived in the neighborhood?

The article doesn't contain any "accounts of eyewitnesses who lived in the neighborhood". None of your posts contain any "accounts of eyewitnesses who lived in the neighborhood".

You never rise above begging the question.

[Gianni]

The first article on the murder of this girl did include the eyewitness accounts.

How's this:

Daniel Robles, a family friend and housemate who was with the teenager during the stakeout, said the unmarked vehicles that emerged moments after the girl pulled out of the driveway appeared to be pursuing her.
"It makes me really angry," Robles told the San Antonio Express-News earlier Tuesday. "This girl's dying and there are these reports that she threatened them."
Investigators from the DEA arrived Tuesday afternoon to begin reviewing the death. San Antonio police officers continued their investigation, questioning the shooting victim's grandmother.
Robles said the agents opened fire immediately after the crash and didn't identify themselves until afterward.

Link

I suppose now that the original threads have been pulled, you can claim that you never read any of that before, huh?

You never rise above begging the question

Wierd that you would even mention the word "question" in a post to me. You have now failed to answer all of the following from me:

Do you think the actions of the agents were appropriate?

If a unique and identifiable strain of MJ was developed for use within a single state, would you be beating the drums for the feds to ban it also?

Do you think the methods and tactics used by the agents were appropriate?

You have continually asserted that law that has been tested and upheld in multiple courts meets your standard of constitutionality. I have asked you time and again if you also apply that same standard to Roe, Brady, Lautenberg, or any other pile of claptrap that opposes the 'conservative' agenda.

Do you think the actions of the agents were apporpriate to the situation?

When it comes to the jackets, why would the accounts of the police be more credible than the accounts of eyewitnesses who lived in the neighborhood?

[Roscoe]

How's this:

In a different thread and not posted by you.

Boy, you're squirming today.

[Gianni]

Boy, you're squirming today.

I'm squirming? From the one who's refused to answer a single question?

[dcwusmc]

Roscoe when you can answer questions, I will post sources but you have YET to answer anything. YOu demand, you beg questions, you whine, you cut-n-paste (TM), you do anything but discuss. You are a PROVEN fraud and liar, but, like your mentor, billy bentpecker, you have no shame...

[Politicalmom]

Why would they need a decoy anyway, since the father wasn't even home to be arrested??