City Settles Lawsuit in Police Misconduct Case

Police told Jason Giandomenico to stay away from a Hawthorne liquor store. He admits to ignoring the order, but said that was no reason for an officer to break his jaw.

In October, the city paid Giandomenico $275,000 to settle his legal claim.

The payout propelled Hawthorne's settlements in police misconduct cases over the past five or so years beyond the $2 million mark, according to a Daily Breeze analysis.

Tommy Kang, the officer involved in the confrontation with Giandomenico, was responsible for more than a quarter of the city's payouts. Kang, a Medal of Valor recipient, is no longer with the force.

In another incident, Kang fractured Alex Rivera's neck during a domestic disturbance arrest at his home in 2007. Rivera, who claimed he was struck and hogtied by Kang, settled his case against the city in August for $340,000.

Kang was also named in two other claims stemming from the same shooting outside a bar on Christmas Day in 2003.

The city did not settle those claims, filed by a bystander shot in the foot and the family of a gunman killed by the officers.

The bystander filed a federal lawsuit, but a judge dismissed it on its merits without awarding anything, according to court records.

Kang and his partner received the Medal of Valor for the shooting in 2004.

It does not appear from the records that any one officer, aside from Kang, stands out as overly aggressive.

In all, his actions have cost the city $615,000.

Since 2004, the city has paid $2,117,200 to settle 15 claims of excessive force and other civil rights allegations.

It is difficult to compare Hawthorne's figures to other South Bay cities because of vastly different demographics and crime trends. However, one similarly sized city with nearly the same number of sworn officers has paid out only $20,000 in a single police misconduct case over the same time period.

Some Hawthorne officials, who asked not to be named, expressed concern about the payouts. They cited the expense to taxpayers, as well as public safety concerns.

A police spokesman, though, said there is nothing disturbing about the record.

"Compared to the amount of arrests and crimes in our city, and what our police officers are faced against every day, we feel that is not an unreasonable number, compared to neighboring cities," Lt. Mike Ishii said.

"If you take this into account, I would say it shows that, by and large, our officers are doing an effective job fighting crime and keeping the streets safe under difficult conditions," he added.

Ishii and City Manager Jag Pathirana said every significant incident of excessive force or civil rights violations is met with an appropriate response, which has included additional training and, in some cases, discipline of officers.

"We do learn from our mistakes," Pathirana added. "Corrective action has been taken every time."

Ishii confirmed that, as of Sept. 30, Kang was no longer employed by the city. He said he could not elaborate on the details of Kang's employment status because it is a personnel matter.

However, experts say that personnel actions and large settlements bring validity to such claims.

"If they're settling them at these numbers, I would say these claims are probably meritorious," Karen Blum, a professor at Suffolk University School of Law in Boston, said of Hawthorne.

Cases alleging police misconduct and civil rights violations are generally difficult for plaintiffs to win, Blum said.

But Blum, city officials and lawyers on both sides of police litigation know that many decisions to settle are based on economics.

"Of course, the downside to that is you look out the front door and there's a line of lawyers looking for their settlement check. A city can get a reputation," said Bruce Praet, an attorney at Ferguson, Praet & Sherman in Santa Ana who specializes in defending cities in police misconduct litigation.

"Anybody can file a lawsuit for anything and it's not infrequent that people who engage in confrontations with law enforcement, frankly, have little to lose by filing a lawsuit - and plenty to gain," added Praet, who does not represent Hawthorne.

Before a lawsuit can be filed against a government entity in state court, a legal claim must be filed. Once a claim is denied - or sometimes ignored - a lawsuit can be filed.

However, federal civil rights lawsuits do not require the filing of a government claim first.

In Hawthorne, City Attorney Russell Miyahira said, each settlement recommendation is made with "prudent risk management decisions."

Any characterization that the city has settled "a lot" of cases for a substantial amount of money is wrong, he said.

"Anybody can make a claim of misconduct," said Miyahira, who declined to discuss individual cases. "A lot of them are unfounded."

In one unusual case, however, Hawthorne paid a $40,000 settlement to a man who never even filed a claim for injuries he received during an arrest.

Omar Hill tried two times to file a federal lawsuit without an attorney, but it appears from court records he couldn't afford the filing fees and was never successful.

Hill's 2006 arrest was captured on video by a patrol car camera. According to sources who viewed the footage, Hill is first seen on the ground in handcuffs with officers holding him down.

When the patrol car stops, another officer enters the frame, runs to Hill, and kicks him in the head, face and back.

It's not clear why Hill was being arrested. California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation show he is a repeat offender who has had several prison commitments.

Records show he is serving six years for an assault with a firearm conviction.

Miyahira, the city attorney, confirmed that Hill was offered a settlement even though no claim was filed.

Praet, the defense litigator, said the city's decision to approach Hill with an offer is not uncommon in his line of work.

"We're going to take care of that person, do the right thing and pay their medical expenses and make them whole," Praet said.

However, Thomas Beck, who specializes in police civil rights cases, said he has never heard of a government agency offering that much money when a legal claim has not been submitted.

"The reason that happened is because of that piece of tape and the behavior of those cops," Beck speculated.

In August, at the request of Mayor Larry Guidi, Miyahira authored a memo to the City Council detailing the 13 cases settled at that point by the city during the previous five years.

Guidi declined comment, calling it a "personnel matter."

Pathirana, though, said he knows the facts of each case and said the settlements are "unfortunately, the cost of doing business."

Pathirana noted that the city is responsible only for the first $250,000 of any settlement under its insurance policy.

That means that, of the 15 settlements, about $1.2 million was paid by Hawthorne taxpayers.

Nearly half of the money was to settle one claim.

A former Hawthorne couple received $1 million earlier this year after a rough arrest resulted in a broken jaw for Anthony Goodrow, who also claimed his medical care was delayed and officers submitted false reports to justify his arrest.

That incident led to a police misconduct investigation by the District Attorney's Office that is still ongoing.

The other 14 settlements ranged from $2,000 to the $340,000 paid to Rivera, with most being less than $100,000.

The majority claimed false arrest, with a handful stemming from injury complaints.

In 2004, a $50,000 settlement was paid to then-Gardena Councilman Steve Bradford. Bradford, recently elected to the state Assembly, claimed he was wrongly arrested in 2002 because he is black.

No Hawthorne Police Officer Association representatives returned telephone calls or e-mails.

The Daily Breeze analysis also included a review of claims, lawsuits and settlements in three other South Bay cities in the last five years.

Although no two cities are exactly alike, Torrance, Gardena and Hermosa Beach were chosen because they compare similarly to Hawthorne in terms of police force size, crime statistics and demographics of the residents.

As of September, the city of Torrance, which is the largest in this analysis with 246 sworn officers and a population of nearly 141,600, had paid more than $1.5 million to settle 11 cases during the same five-year period.

One case accounts for nearly half of the money. The city paid $700,000 to family members of two burglary suspects who were shot after hiding out in a tool shed during a search in 2008.

Three other claims stemming from officer-involved shootings account for a bit more than $600,000, according to city records.

Gardena, which has 91 sworn officers serving nearly 92,500 residents, settled one misconduct claim in the same time period by paying $20,000 to a schoolteacher who said he was wrongly arrested because he is black, according to records and the man's attorney.

Hermosa Beach, a smaller city with just 39 sworn officers serving a population of approximately 18,500, paid $426,500 to settle four claims.

Nearly half of that money, though, was paid in recent weeks to settle a claim stemming from an August 2004 incident of alleged excessive force that sparked a federal investigation.

Although Hermosa Beach's demographics are not comparable to Hawthorne's, the city was included in the review because of its reported history of excessive force accusations that arise from alcohol-fueled confrontations at Pier Plaza.

Hawthorne, with a population of about 92,455 and 96 sworn officers, recorded four homicides, 919 assaults and 378 robberies in 2008. During that same year, Torrance had two homicides, 109 assaults and 173 robberies, while Gardena reported three homicides, 141 assaults and 230 robberies.

Still, Beck, the lawyer who specializes in police civil rights cases, said he doesn't believe Hawthorne police officers behave differently than officers in other cities.

"They don't stand out as having any more problems than any other agency," he said.