\t\t\t\t\tWhat’s at stake?<\/p>\n
Alleging wrongful death, gross negligence and constitutional violations, the family of Joseph Perez is seeking unspecified damages from the city and county of Fresno and the ambulance company that responded to the scene in 2017.<\/p>\n
Jury selection gets underway later this month in a wrongful death trial in which the family of a 41-year-old Fresno man says he died after city police and county deputies restrained him face down on the ground.<\/p>\n
Alleging wrongful death, gross negligence and constitutional violations, the family of Joseph Perez is seeking unspecified damages from the city and county of Fresno and the parent corporation of the ambulance company that responded to the scene in 2017.<\/p>\n
In a statement to Fresnoland, Perez family attorney Neil Gehlawat called it a \u201cvery tragic case\u201d and noted that the coroner concluded Perez\u2019s death was a homicide due to \u201ccompressive asphyxia.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe died because officers\/deputies restrained him face down for several minutes and one officer ultimately sat on top of a backboard placed on his back at the direction of a paramedic,\u201d Gehlawat said. \u201cHis death was preventable and could have been avoided if the Defendant officers and paramedics followed their training.\u201d<\/p>\n
Officials with the city and county of Fresno did not respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n
In court filings and previous arguments<\/a>, authorities have said the officers should be immune from liability in connection with Perez\u2019s death, essentially arguing that Perez caused the episode by being under the influence of methamphetamine and arguing and fighting with the officers instead of following legal commands.<\/p>\n Attorneys for the Perez family have countered that officers should be liable because they detained and restrained Perez for his own safety and protection but ultimately killed him.<\/p>\n While the coroner\u2019s office classified the death as a homicide, they also noted Perez\u2019s methamphetamine intoxication was \u201c10 times\u201d above a typically lethal dose.<\/p>\n Police encountered Perez on May, 10, 2017, screaming and running in and out of traffic near the intersection at Palm and Santa Fe Avenues. They detained and placed him in handcuffs, they said, to protect Perez. Video footage shows Perez refusing to follow commands.\u00a0<\/p>\n Police took the handcuffed man to the ground, where a lengthy struggle ensued that included police and deputies briefly hog-tying Perez, who wound up face down on the pavement.<\/p>\n At one point during the struggle, a sheriff\u2019s deputy allegedly placed a towel over Perez\u2019s face \u2014 video shows Perez appearing to hit his own head against the ground \u2014 which the family says further restricted Perez\u2019s breathing.<\/p>\n An American Ambulance paramedic told police to restrain Perez while they secured a backboard to Perez\u2019s back so they could flip him over and carry him to the ambulance. While one officer sat on Perez\u2019s back as the paramedic worked, Perez told police that he could not breath.<\/p>\n As the struggle continued, according to the lawsuit, Perez lost consciousness and had no pulse when paramedics eventually turned him over.<\/p>\n \u201cNone of the Defendants performed CPR on him at that time,\u201d the family says in the complaint.<\/p>\n \u00a0Perez was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.<\/p>\n Fresno police and sheriff\u2019s deputies have been repeatedly cleared in connection with Perez\u2019s death, with the Fresno Police Department, Sheriff\u2019s Office, District Attorney and the Office of Independent Review all concluding the officers and deputies acted within policy during the incident.<\/p>\n