Officers Named in Car Accident Suit
A chain-reaction collision that occurred after a 19-year-old was pulled over for a minor traffic stop has landed the city in court.
Police in an undercover car had pulled over Craig Rolland Clemens of Thousand Oaks on April 19 just north of East Los Angeles Avenue on Sycamore Drive, said Clemens’ attorney, James Allen.
The officers had issued Clemens a warning for a broken taillight and were returning to their vehicle, when a car driven by Simi Valley resident Joseph Gonzales topped a small rise and “plowed into the police car,” according to Allen. That collision sent the police car into Clemens’ vehicle.
The city and police are named in the lawsuit because they were “in the chain of collision,” Allen said.
The suit does not state how much money Clemens is seeking, but he claims to have lost wages and had medical expenses because of the accident, as well as damage to his car.
Clemens’ suit also names as defendants Gonzales and his wife, Dorothea Gonzales--the owner of the car.
The city will fight the action, City Atty. David Hirsch said.
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