In the aftermath<\/a> of the tragedy, family, witnesses, and members of the community<\/a> blamed<\/a> the collision<\/a> on the CHP, which began pursuing Hernandez Garcia for a possible misdemeanor when he stopped at a gas station about 25 minutes before the crash. The agency claimed the pursuit<\/a> ended soon after it started and well before the collision.\u00a0<\/p>\n Bernard said the case against Oakland will argue that a dangerous pothole on E. 21st Street was an \u201cexacerbating or substantial factor\u201d in his death. According to residents who spoke to The Oaklandside that week, an orange cone had been placed over that hole, which Hernandez Garcia appeared to careen around as he sped up the hill, leading to a loss of control of his car.\u00a0<\/p>\n The case against the Oakland Police Department, Bernard said, will argue that their officers failed to render proper emergency medical aid to Woodruff in the aftermath of the collision, accused her of being a passenger in the suspect\u2019s car, and \u201cmishandled\u201d Boomer\u2019s remains, which led to \u201cworsening emotional trauma to family members.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n The case against the California Highway Patrol and the State of California, she said, will include a claim of negligence from an \u201cunreasonable\u201d speed pursuit that led to Boomer\u2019s death and \u201ccatastrophic\u201d injuries to Woodruff.\u00a0<\/p>\n Bernard said that she will pursue damages \u201cin the tens of millions of dollars against each entity.\u201d Boomer\u2019s family and Woodriff will be co-plaintiffs in each of the two lawsuits\u00a0<\/p>\n 37 depositions Bernard said she had taken 37 depositions to build her case. Some of them were East Oakland residents who contacted her with evidence, including video, that CHP officers were speeding during the pursuit. She also said she is working with an investigator who has determined that the video released by the CHP from its drone, which followed the driver, makes it appear they\u2019re farther behind the driver, and driving more slowly, than they actually were, because of the road\u2019s multiple hills.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cSo if Hernandez Garcia is driving up the hill and he\u2019s gone over the crest and the police are not right behind him, it\u2019s not because they were going slow \u2014 it was because they were at the bottom of the hill with their lights and accelerating to catch up with him, and he was at the top of the hill,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Bernard said the family will also eventually sue Hernandez Garcia and his family\u2019s car insurance company, but they have a two-year window to file that claim.\u00a0<\/p>\n Bernard told The Oaklandside the last few months have been a nightmare for Boomer\u2019s immediate family on the East Coast, especially his mother, as well as for his chosen family in Oakland.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Marvin-Boomer-Family_EG_025-1600x1067.jpg\")
From left, Marvin Boomer, Sr., left, Dorothenia Lenoris Martin-Boomer and Tynesha Boomer, Marvin Boomer\u2019s parents and oldest sister, sit inside Marvin Boomer\u2019s home in Oakland\u2019s Highland Terrace neighborhood on June 5, 2025. Marvin Boomer was a Castlemont High School teacher who was killed when a suspect fleeing from the California Highway Patrol struck a fire hydrant, which hit Boomer while he was out walking with his partner. Credit: Estefany Gonzalez<\/p>\n