Family of Teen-Ager Who Died in Custody Sues City
The family of a Fountain Valley teen-ager who died in police custody while outside a Grateful Dead concert at the Forum last December filed a wrongful- death claim Tuesday against the city of Inglewood.
The claim, a precursor to a potential lawsuit, says Patrick Shanahan was the victim of “summary execution” by overly aggressive police officers who struck him with their batons, applied a chokehold and did not start emergency first aid when he stopped breathing, said Lawrence Trygstad, the family’s attorney.
Inglewood police officials have maintained that officers did not use excessive force. They said Shanahan was uncooperative and under the influence of drugs when police arrested him outside the Forum on Dec. 10. Several probes, including an internal police investigation of the incident, are continuing.
In addition, the district attorney’s office is investigating the police response, and the FBI is looking into whether Shanahan’s civil rights were violated when police arrested him.
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