Ball
v. City of Long Beach
This is a civil rights case in which Mr. Ball, who
was twenty years old at the time, was stopped for a
traffic violation. When the young man asked the officers
why they were stopping him the officers began to harass
him and used racial epithets when responding to him.
Then the officers began to beat him with their flashlights
and as more officers arrived on the scene the beating
continued. Mr. Ball required hundreds of stitches to
repair a six-inch laceration and numerous other lacerations
on his head.
 When
the case went to trial, the defense claimed they were
unable to restrain Mr. Ball and had to use strong-arm
tactics to get him to comply. The problem with this
claim is that Mr. Ball is only 5'7" 140 pounds
while three of the four officers who arrested hime were
triathletes and ranged from 6'1" and 6'4"
and over 200 pounds.
The initial attorney who handled Mr. Ball's case demanded
$50,000 from the City of Long Beach, while the city
offered only $25,000. Then, Mr. Ball came to our firm
for guidance and ultimately asked us to handle his case.
After countless investigations, depositions, and a difficult
Federal litigation, we were able to settle the case
for $650,000. This is the largest police misconduct
settlement in Long Beach Police department history.
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