Lawsuit filed over fatal shooting by Oakland police
(KTVU) - Here's KTVU crime reporter Henry Lee's Rap Sheet blog for July 22, 2016:
LAWSUIT FILED IN FATAL OAKLAND POLICE SHOOTING: The teenage daughter of a man who was shot and killed by Oakland police while allegedly armed with a fake gun filed a federal civil rights lawsuit today against the city.
Richard Perkins was shot and killed by four officers near the corner of 90th and Bancroft Avenues about 5:30 p.m. on Nov. 15.
A day after the shooting, then-Oakland Police Chief Sean Whent said Perkins "pulled out a replica pistol from the waistband and pointed it in the general direction of the officers."
Sgt. Joseph Turner and officers Jonathan Cairo, Joshua Barnard and Allahno Hughes opened fire, police have said.
In a lawsuit filed in U.S. District District Court in Oakland, Perkins' daughter, identified only as T.D.P., said her father was armed with a toy pistol and was only trying to get rid of it before approaching the officers.
"Mr. Perkins never raised or pointed the toy pistol toward officers or anyone, nor did he make any threatening movements or gestures with the toy pistol," the suit says.
"Mr. Perkins did not say anything," the complaint says. "As Mr. Perkins was dropping the toy pistol, one of the defendant officers yelled something to the effect of 'He's got a gun!' and, without warning, defendants Turner, Cairo, Barnard and Hughes opened fire on Mr. Perkins, causing at least 15 bullet wounds to his body."
Surveillance video from a nearby gas station captured what happened, said the family's attorney Michael Haddad.
"I've seen the surveillance video, and it doesn't bear out what the officers claimed," Haddad said.
The incident happened as the officers were finishing paperwork after they impounded several motorcycles linked to illegal sideshow activity.
The suit, which seeks unspecified damages, names the city, Whent and the officers as defendants. The city has not responded to the suit in court.
Turner has been linked to another controversial incident, according to sources.
Three weeks after the shooting, a group of off-duty Oakland officers was drinking at Monaghan's bar in the Oakland hills. The officers then decided to go to Turner's house.
But one of them, Cullen Faeth, apparently ended up at the wrong house while allegedly drunk, authorities said. He showed up at the home of an Alameda County deputy probation officer, jumped on and attacked her and demanded entry, the woman says.
Faeth has pleaded not guilty to charges of battery, trespassing and public intoxication.
POT-SEEKING SUSPECTS NABBED: San Leandro police arrested two men for allegedly breaking into a home that they mistakenly believed would be filled with marijuana or cash.
Darrien Smith, 24 of Bay Point and Brandon Polk, 23, of Oakland were each booked on suspicion of residential burglary.
The investigation began about 1:40 a.m. Wednesday when a father and his 12-year-old son awoke at their home on Antoine Court to loud crashing noises, said San Leandro police Lt. Robert McManus.
They realized that the sounds were coming from inside of their garage and called 911. Officers arrived, but the intruders had already left. Police determined that the suspects had tried unsuccessfully to force open a door leading to the kitchen, McManus said.
Police obtained surveillance footage from a neighbor's home. That evening, undercover officers spotted a suspicious car drive past the burglarized home.
Uniformed officers stopped the car and detained Smith, who was on parole, and Polk. A search of the car uncovered items stolen during the burglary.
Police found that one of the suspect's cell phones had a map application listing the victims' address on Antoine Court and other East Bay locations, McManus said.
Investigators determined that the suspects "may have followed customers home from various marijuana-related businesses, such as hydroponics stores, believing that the homes may contain marijuana or large sums of cash," McManus said.
But the victims on Antoine Court weren't linked to any illegal activity, and their home may have been mistaken for another one, police said.
Smith is being held without bail at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin. Polk's bail was set at $50,000.
VALLEJO FIGHTS BACK IN KIDNAP LAWSUIT: Vallejo fought back today against a federal lawsuit filed by the couple accusing city police of dismissing their kidnap report as a hoax.
Attorneys representing the city filed motions in U.S. District Court in Sacramento to dismiss the lawsuit on the grounds that police did not legally overstep their bounds when they publicly branded Denise Huskins and her boyfriend Aaron Quinn as liars.
"Police skepticism and willingness to pursue alternate theories of the case do not amount to conduct so extreme as to exceed all bounds of that usually tolerated in a civilized community," attorneys Robert Chalfant and Wendy Motooka wrote.
In response, Kevin Clune, an attorney for the couple said in a statement, "By filing these papers, Vallejo continues its misguided approach of blaming the victim. Denise and Aaron have already experienced unimaginable horror at the hands of Vallejo. Amazingly, Vallejo now seeks money (in the form of legal fees) from these victims for asserting their civil rights. We have complete faith that the court will hold Vallejo accountable for its outrageous tactics."
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