Man Who Was Beaten Wins Verdict Against Officer

An unemployed roofer who was beaten--and his dog shot and killed--by an El Cajon police officer has won a $110,000 civil rights verdict against the city and the officer.

A San Diego Superior Court jury returned the award Tuesday, finding that Officer Rick Whitman violated Richard Carlos Fernandez’s rights in the beating, which stemmed from an alleged violation of a city leash law.

The lawyer who brought the lawsuit called the case “outrageous” and said the verdict is particularly gratifying because El Cajon officials had backed Whitman’s claim that he did nothing wrong. Dozens of witnesses watched Whitman shoot the dog and beat Fernandez without justification, attorney Guy Ricciardulli said.

“There was no gray here,” Ricciardulli said. “This was all black and white.”

Whitman could not be reached for comment Wednesday, and his lawyer, Stan Calvert, did not return a phone call. But Harvey Henderson, an assistant city manager, said the city did the right thing by standing by Whitman, who has been an El Cajon police officer since 1986.

“We feel that when officers act within the scope of their duties, among other things we have a responsibility to defend them,” Henderson said.

“With the jury verdict in hand, it’s easy for a lawyer to say in hindsight that a police officer did wrong and the city is obstinate,” Henderson said. “If the verdict had gone the other way, that lawyer wouldn’t be saying that.”

The case grew out of a March 18, 1990, incident in El Cajon’s Wells Park.

After leaving church services, Fernandez, 32, accompanied by his dog, was walking through the park when he was stopped by an animal control officer investigating a complaint that the dog was loose.

According to court papers filed later, however, there was no question that the dog, a chow named Pumpkin, was on a leash.

The city claimed in its legal briefs that Fernandez became abusive and that animal control officer Corina Tapia called for police.

Fernandez said in his legal papers that he had been violating no laws, did not wish to talk to Tapia and did not wish to talk to Whitman, either, when he arrived.

When the officer arrived, Fernandez said, he immediately ordered Fernandez to lie flat on the ground and began beating Fernandez with his nightstick. Whitman also hit the dog, and, when Pumpkin bit him, shot and killed the dog, Fernandez said.

The city claimed Fernandez screamed obscenities at Whitman and tried to punch him. Then, the city said, the dog began to attack the officer.

In response, the city said, Whitman shot and killed the dog and tried to subdue Fernandez.

Fernandez was charged with criminal assault and interfering with an officer.

El Cajon Municipal Judge Larrie Brainard dismissed both charges on April 30, 1990, saying Tapia and Whitman had “no legal basis for their conduct.”

That led to the civil suit, which went to trial before San Diego Superior Court Judge Carlos A. Cazares.

A jury awarded Fernandez $100,000 for violation of his civil rights, which the city must pay. It also hit Whitman with $10,000 in punitive damages.

Fernandez could not be reached for comment Wednesday.