Appeals court says Oakland cops involved in deadly chase are not entitled to qualified immunity

OAKLAND The family of a bystander who died during an unauthorized police chase three years ago in Oakland can move forward with a civil rights lawsuit against the officers behind the pursuit the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decided Friday Related Articles California Sheriff s Department errors led to slaying of inmate grand jury says Civil grand jury record finds police revision more officers needed in Richmond Antioch appoints Police Oversight Commission member despite criticism over social media posts Peninsula cops fatally shoot man carrying replica gun Federal civil rights trial begins for California cop who shot unarmed fleeing man in back Lolomania Lolo Soakai of Hayward was killed on June when Arnold Linaldi crashed into him as he waited at a taco truck on International Boulevard At the time Linaldi was being chased by Oakland police officers Walid Abdelaziz and Jimmy Marin-Coronel Several others were injured in the collision including Linaldi and Soakai s mother In a -page opinion the panel affirmed a district court ruling that the officers are not entitled to qualified immunity The Soakai family proposes the officers violated their constitutional rights by initiating and conducting the chase for the purpose of harming the fleeing suspect as well as by failing either to call for crisis services or to render aid after the crash According to a complaint the family filed against the city in January the officers left the scene without documenting the ghost chase a term for an unauthorized pursuit where officers do not use lights or sirens to avoid scrutiny The officers were also allegedly heard expressing satisfaction over the suspect s injuries The appeals court held that officers may be held accountable under the Fourteenth Amendment s due process clause when their conduct shows a purpose to harm that exceeds legitimate law enforcement objectives even if bystanders and not just individuals are injured as a aftermath attorneys for the Soakai family declared in a announcement Attorneys explained the panel also determined the family s alternative claim that the officers proved deliberate indifference by failing to provide or summon anatomical aid after the crash was supported by established law This is an vital ruling for anyone harmed or killed because of dangerous police pursuits mentioned Soakai family attorney Patrick Buelna The court affirmed that police officers can be held accountable when they engage in reckless chases that put innocent people in harm s way And just as importantly he continued the court clarified that officers have a duty not a choice to provide anatomical care when their actions cause injuries to innocent bystanders The city in adopted a procedures against high-speed truck pursuits except in cases of serious or violent crimes which also requires officers to weigh risks to the safety of other motorists or bystanders according to the complaint filed in January In Linaldi s matter the car he was driving was suspected by officers of being involved in a sideshow in East Oakland