Judge orders Anaheim to release evidence in Fatal police shooting of Unarmed Latino Man

From [HERE] A federal judge Monday said Anaheim must turn over various documents and reports sought by the family of a man shot and killed by a police officer but need not give up documents directly related to or provide access to the officer himself for questions and depositions to preserve his constitutional rights.

Still, U.S. District Judge James Selna said in his order that statements officer Nick Bennallack has made to the city or the Police Department are not protected.

Bennallack was named in a civil lawsuit filed by the family of Manuel Diaz, 25, whose July 21 shooting, followed by another officer-involved fatal shooting the next day, triggered protests in Anaheim.

Bennallack returned to duty within two weeks of the shooting. As is customary for all officer-involved shootings, the Orange County District Attorney's Office is investigating the death.

The city argued in court papers that sharing all reports and documents now with the plaintiff – legally termed "discovery" – could jeopardize the legitimacy of the district attorney's criminal probe, violate Bennallack's Fifth Amendment rights and would create a conflict of interest for the city because it would have to defend against an action about which its employee refuses to speak.

"Defendants present no compelling justification to stay discovery based on the law enforcement privilege," Selna said in his order. "The events underlying the (Diaz family) lawsuit and the identities of the deceased and Bennallack are quite public, diminishing the need for secrecy."

Diaz family attorney Dana Douglas said she was pleased with the ruling that was "90 percent in the plaintiff's favor."

Among other things, she wants to see what training Bennallack went through to make sure he was following the city's policies on use of force. The family's attorneys say they sought records relating to the fatal shooting, including witness statements, police reports, physical evidence, medical evidence, ballistics data and radio-call recordings.

"Something went wrong, and we will now be able to get the records," she said. "We're now able to prove the lion's share of the case. The judge gave us access to all of the evidence we need."

What Bennallack would offer is "fairly predictable," Douglas added.

In December, the district attorney cleared the officer of any criminal wrongdoing in another fatal shooting that occurred six months before Diaz was shot.

Diaz's family filed a $50 million lawsuit against Anaheim and the Police Department within days of the shooting, alleging federal civil rights violations and wrongful death, and has sought investigative reports and other documents from the city.

Diaz's mother, Genevieve Huizar, who attended the Monday hearing, said she hopes "that justice prevails in my case and every case."