Riverside Ca Suits

Almost two years after four white Riverside police officers shot and killed a black woman passed out in a car, the city has finalized a $3-million legal settlement with the woman's survivors, family representatives and attorneys involved in the case said Wednesday. Tyisha Miller's family will receive $500,000 immediately and is planning to accept the rest in installments over the next 15 years, said the Rev. Bernell Butler, Miller's cousin and a family spokesman.

Almost two years after four white Riverside police officers shot and killed a black woman passed out in a car, the city has finalized a $3-million legal settlement with the woman's survivors, family representatives and attorneys involved in the case said Wednesday. Tyisha Miller's family will receive $500,000 immediately and is planning to accept the rest in installments over the next 15 years, said the Rev. Bernell Butler, Miller's cousin and a family spokesman.

In a precedent-setting decision, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Thursday that local governments can pay punitive damages on behalf of law enforcement officers who have violated the civil rights of citizens. The decision, which arose from a 1987 incident in which a pregnant woman was punched and photographed under duress by Riverside police, was termed "outrageous" by attorney Stephen Yagman of Santa Monica, who sued on the woman's behalf.

Attorneys representing survivors of Tyisha Miller, a black woman killed by white police officers in Riverside, have reached a tentative multimillion-dollar settlement with the city, according to lawyers and court documents filed Wednesday. The documents say an agreement has been reached but do not specify how much the city would pay. But a source close to the case, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the city has agreed to pay $3 million.

Billboard Firm Sues Riverside: The city of Riverside and its planning department were sued by Martin Communications Inc., which accused the city of violating free-speech rights by arranging the removal of a billboard near the 91 Freeway. The suit said the billboard's removal Nov. 9 was prompted by the planning commission, which allegedly refused to grant a zoning change on the property unless the owner had the billboard taken down.

Attorneys for the city filed documents Monday seeking dismissal of a federal court lawsuit charging that Tyisha Miller was denied her civil rights when she was fatally shot last December by four Riverside police officers. Miller was shot after the officers, responding to a medical 911 call, said they found her in medical distress inside her locked car and one officer broke a window to reach for a handgun that rested on her lap.

A fleeing home-invasion robber who was shot by Riverside police officers has been awarded an additional $80,000 by the same federal jury that previously awarded him more than $100,000 after finding his civil rights had been violated. Brian Forrett is serving a 32-year prison sentence for the 1990 burglary of a Riverside home in which he tied up three victims and shot one in the head, blinding him, before escaping with four guns and 250 rounds of ammunition.

A Moreno Valley man left quadriplegic after a car he was riding in spun out of control and crashed into a palm tree here has won a $12-million settlement from the city of Riverside and Volkswagen of America, the man's attorney said Tuesday.

Attorneys representing survivors of Tyisha Miller, a black woman killed by white police officers in Riverside, have reached a tentative multimillion-dollar settlement with the city, according to lawyers and court documents filed Wednesday. The documents say an agreement has been reached but do not specify how much the city would pay. But a source close to the case, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the city has agreed to pay $3 million.

Attorneys for the parents of Tyisha Miller filed a federal civil rights lawsuit Tuesday, seeking an unspecified amount of money from the city of Riverside, the four police officers who shot her Dec. 28, and their field supervisor. The wrongful death lawsuit, announced by attorney Johnnie L. Cochran Jr., terms the shooting "one of the most shameful, vicious, and cruel acts of police brutality in the history" of Riverside and alleges a police "conspiracy to cover it up."

Attorneys for the city filed documents Monday seeking dismissal of a federal court lawsuit charging that Tyisha Miller was denied her civil rights when she was fatally shot last December by four Riverside police officers. Miller was shot after the officers, responding to a medical 911 call, said they found her in medical distress inside her locked car and one officer broke a window to reach for a handgun that rested on her lap.

Attorneys for the parents of Tyisha Miller filed a federal civil rights lawsuit Tuesday, seeking an unspecified amount of money from the city of Riverside, the four police officers who shot her Dec. 28, and their field supervisor. The wrongful death lawsuit, announced by attorney Johnnie L. Cochran Jr., terms the shooting "one of the most shameful, vicious, and cruel acts of police brutality in the history" of Riverside and alleges a police "conspiracy to cover it up."

A fleeing home-invasion robber who was shot by Riverside police officers has been awarded an additional $80,000 by the same federal jury that previously awarded him more than $100,000 after finding his civil rights had been violated. Brian Forrett is serving a 32-year prison sentence for the 1990 burglary of a Riverside home in which he tied up three victims and shot one in the head, blinding him, before escaping with four guns and 250 rounds of ammunition.

Billboard Firm Sues Riverside: The city of Riverside and its planning department were sued by Martin Communications Inc., which accused the city of violating free-speech rights by arranging the removal of a billboard near the 91 Freeway. The suit said the billboard's removal Nov. 9 was prompted by the planning commission, which allegedly refused to grant a zoning change on the property unless the owner had the billboard taken down.

In a precedent-setting decision, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Thursday that local governments can pay punitive damages on behalf of law enforcement officers who have violated the civil rights of citizens. The decision, which arose from a 1987 incident in which a pregnant woman was punched and photographed under duress by Riverside police, was termed "outrageous" by attorney Stephen Yagman of Santa Monica, who sued on the woman's behalf.

A Moreno Valley man left quadriplegic after a car he was riding in spun out of control and crashed into a palm tree here has won a $12-million settlement from the city of Riverside and Volkswagen of America, the man's attorney said Tuesday.