The family of a man who was fatally struck by a Los Angeles Police Department vehicle late last year is suing the city, alleging that Los Angeles is negligent in its duty to oversee the department.
Luis Espinoza, 26, of Long Beach, was struck on Century Boulevard near McKinley Avenue in the Green Meadows neighborhood of South Los Angeles on Dec. 8.
Espinoza, who police said was about 75 feet outside the crosswalk when he was struck, was rendered aid by the LAPD officer who was driving, but he succumbed to his injuries at a nearby hospital.
“The City of Los Angeles failed to properly train the LAPD officer that caused the fatal crash to have reverence for human life … The LAPD officer who was speeding dangerously on December 8, 2023 did not have reverence for human life because she was recklessly driving at a very high speed when she drove the LAPD police vehicle that hit Decedent and caused the death of the Decedent,” according to a lawsuit filed by Espinoza’s family.
The lawsuit also alleges there was no reason for the officer to be speeding, as “there was no emergency,” so the officer “inappropriately used the emergency lights.”
Because Espinoza’s family is seeking monetary damages, the amount of which will be left up to the courts.