Ruling Stands Against Torrance Police Sgt. in Cyclist’s Death

An appellate court has upheld a jury’s judgment that Torrance Police Sgt. Rollo Green must pay more than $375,000 to the family of Kelly Rastello, the 19-year-old motorcyclist killed in a 1984 traffic collision with Green.

The decision was applauded by Rastello’s brother, Timothy Rastello, who said he hopes it will help spark reforms in the Torrance Police Department.

And Brian Panish, an attorney for the Rastellos, said: “This opinion is just further evidence of what we’ve been alleging all along--that Rollo Green was drunk, caused the death of Kelly Rastello, and the Torrance Police Department covered it up.”

But an attorney for Green said his client would appeal the decision to the state Supreme Court. He described Green as “a very upstanding citizen and a model police officer who’s done a lot of good things for the public.”

The ruling by the state Court of Appeal’s Second Appellate Division, issued Monday, came in Green’s appeal of the jury decision in a wrongful-death suit brought by the Rastellos.

Green was not on duty at the time of the Aug. 31, 1984, accident. But the Rastellos claimed Torrance police attempted to cover up Green’s responsibility.

In a 1989 decision, a Los Angeles County Superior Court jury found that the Torrance police covered up for Green, who had been drinking before the accident, by failing to measure his blood-alcohol level and by delaying a field sobriety test.

The jury awarded a $5.5-million civil judgment against the Police Department and six of its officers and added $2.1 million in attorney fees and trial expenses. The city initially appealed that verdict but agreed in May to a $6.5-million settlement.

In a separate action, the jury ordered Green to pay $375,000 in compensatory damages, $5,000 in punitive damages and court costs. The decision this week came in response to Green’s appeal of that decision.

Green’s attorney, Will J. Pirkey, noted that the appellate decision upheld an earlier ruling that the Rastellos must pay Green $75,000 in attorneys’ fees following an unsuccessful civil rights action against him.

The appellate decision specifically states that “the record discloses abundant evidence . . . which established beyond any conceivable doubt Green had been intoxicated at the time of the accident and that TPD actively sought to conceal his condition and protect him from liability.”

Pirkey disagreed, saying Green was not intoxicated.

But Timothy Rastello called the appellate comment “pretty damning.” He urged Torrance city officials--who are currently searching for a new police chief--to hire a chief from outside the department.

“We just hope the city manager and the City Council finally open their eyes and make the changes that are necessary,” Rastello said.

City Manager LeRoy J. Jackson, who is expected to choose a new chief shortly, said Wednesday he had not had a chance to read the decision.