Couple Were Arrested but Not Charged in San Clemente : $5-Million Claim Filed in Dropped Molest Case

A $5-million claim alleging false imprisonment by San Clemente police was filed against the city Monday by a couple who were arrested for allegedly molesting their infant son on a public beach, jailed and then released without being charged.

The claim also charged San Clemente with wrongful death because the couple believed until late Monday that the mother had lost a 5 1/2-month fetus as a result of the incident, said their attorney, George Dunlop.

However, Dunlop later said the wrongful death allegation would be dropped because it is now unclear whether the woman was pregnant.

Edoardo DiAngelis, 38, and Yvonne DiAngelis, 20, were booked into the San Clemente City Jail the evening of June 15 on suspicion of oral copulation after a witness told police she saw them molesting their 13-month-old son, Cairo, on the beach.

Released After Questioning

They were held in lieu of $10,000 bail each for 14 hours until an investigator could interview them the following morning. After a brief interrogation, a detective released the couple and dropped the charges because of insufficient evidence, police said.

The angry parents, who had recently moved from Massachusetts and were staying with friends in San Clemente, said they had merely planted raspberry kisses on their son’s behind.

They added that officers never asked or allowed them to explain their version of events and that it traumatized their breast-fed son to be separated from his mother overnight. The infant spent the night at Orangewood, the county’s shelter for abandoned and abused children.

Greg Hulsizer, assistant city manager, would not comment on the claim, noting that it had been turned over to the city’s claims administrator. He confirmed that the claim charged San Clemente with false arrest, false imprisonment, negligence, infliction of emotional distress, defamation and wrongful death.

The city has 45 days to either accept the claim or reject it. A claim must be filed with a city within 100 days after an alleged wrongdoing has occurred before a lawsuit can be filed.

Chief Defends Department

Police Chief Kelson McDaniel said he believes that the parents were guilty of “deviant behavior” in kissing their child on “an orifice.” However, he said the department lacked enough evidence--more than one eyewitness, physical evidence showing that the child had been molested, or a previous criminal record for either parent on similar charges--to prosecute the couple.

He defended his department’s actions, saying that there were no detectives on duty the night of the arrests and that the couple could not be interviewed until the next day. McDaniel explained that it his policy that only detectives question suspects.

He added that the parents would still have spent the night in jail had a detective been working that Father’s Day evening because any possible law enforcement record on either the father or the mother could not have been checked until the following morning.

McDaniel, who said he investigated the case and his officers’ conduct, had declared earlier that the arrests were justifiable and based on probable cause. He reiterated those statements Monday afternoon upon learning of the $5-million claim.

Dunlop, who has a Newport Beach practice, said he hopes in the next few days to “figure out” whether Yvonne DiAngelis is pregnant by taking her to an obstetrician. Neither parent could be reached for comment Monday.