Posted on 09/27/2017 8:30:38 AM PDT by Snickering Hound
A federal judge has ordered a former Texas police officer to pay $6.3 million to the family of an Iowa man who died in his custody.
William Livezey Jr., 70, died from a heart attack he suffered after being handcuffed by Malakoff Police officer Ernesto Fierro on the side of Texas State Highway 31 in Malakoff on Dec. 11, 2013.
Livezey was delivering reclaimed lumber from his business in Taintor, Iowa, to someone in Houston when Fierro stopped him, Fierro claimed Livezey had driven aggressively and repeatedly tried to run him off the road, however witnesses made the same claim about Fierro.
"According to witnesses, officer Fierro drove recklessly or aggressively next to Mr. Livezey and waved to him to pull over," "Officer Fierro's motorcycle was weaving erratically from side to side, and darted in front of Mr. Livezey's truck approximately 15 times, forcing him off the road onto the shoulder. One witness stated that he had to get off the road to avoid being hit by officer Fierro, and that officer Fierro almost hit another truck."
"Mr. Livezey was handcuffed with his hands behind his back and was leaning against his truck. His voice was shaky, and he told the officers he was not feeling well, his chest was hurting, and he thought that the other man was going to hurt him. Officer Fierro said that Mr. Livezey was 'faking' and just 'putting on a show' claiming shortness of breath to get out of going to jail,"
Livezey would be transported from the scene via ambulance and pronounced dead shortly thereafter due to a heart attack induced by the preceding events. Fierro was later convicted of aggravated assault and other charges in connection with his role in the arrest and fired from the police department, court documents stated.
(Excerpt) Read more at chron.com ...
The legal system is supposed to make the victim whole. In this case, the judge didn't do that.
The judge bankrupted the bad cop instead of letting the taxpayers bear the pain (as usual). That counts for something.
Unfortunately the family has as much chance of seeing the money as Fred Goldman.
Wrong.
you cause shit YOU pay .
You're funny.
Clearly the guy wasn’t pulling over or he wouldn’t have been trying to get him to stop......lots of fishy stuff in this case.
Should be defined by law as part of the penalty for the crime. Nothing more. Nothing less.
He and/or his department are probably insured for this. If the insurance company pays out, though, the city’s premiums might go up. And if that happens, taxpayers will take it in the shorts.
Cop was off duty and got 'triggered'.
And then drove like a maniac trying to get the old guy to pull over according to witness testimony.
He got fired from the force and convicted of aggravated assault. Nothing fishy at all here.
>>He got fired from the force and convicted of aggravated assault. Nothing fishy at all here.
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I really wish police nationwide would recognize that this DOES happen, stop “closing ranks”, and police their own.
Too often, their failure to do so, as well as their covering for “their brothers”, only results in becoming fuel for BLM fire.
With every episode of cops closing ranks, our trust in them erodes further.
Following that well established practice of posting without reading?
“Fierro was later convicted of aggravated assault”
He should have face NO civil liability without FIRST being convicted.
And, for what it’s worth, liability beyond monetary damages should be forbidden in ALL cases. No punitive or non-monetary damages, No seizure of assets beyond those spelled out by statute for the crimes already convicted of.
“How is this not an “excessive fine”?”
Because it was not a criminal proceeding but one of restitution. That is not the definition of a ‘fine’.
Go get a dictionary.
“No wage garnishment in Texas.”
That’s for State courts. This is federal court.
And why is there civil liability in a criminal matter without there already being a conviction for that matter?
Why do we allow non-monetary damages as if the function of the courts is to allow folks to extract their pound of flesh?
I don’t know what country you are from, but you appear to have no understanding of American jurisprudence.
It’s not a fine. They’re civil damages.
L
These things I’m mentioning are wrong and should have never been. There should be no civil liability when the underlying issue is a crime unless there is first a conviction. There should be no civil liability for non-monetary damages.
“American jurisprudence” doesn’t make it right and good.
There was a conviction here.
And the judgment amount really doesn’t matter. It’s not like he’s ever going to be able to pay it short of winning the lottery.
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