4 Deputies, County Dropped From Suit on Death of Ventura Man

Four deputies and Ventura County have been dropped as defendants in a federal civil rights lawsuit related to the death of a Ventura man last year.

Eight deputies are still named in the suit, and the county could ultimately be responsible for paying any judgment a jury levies against them. But the dismissals reduce the potential payout for the county, said Jeff Held, an Oxnard attorney representing all the defendants.

“Each dismissal is one less defendant against which to award damages,” Held said. “So there are ramifications to the county’s dismissal.”

Also dropped from the suit were two plaintiffs: Sean and Colin Dowey, brothers of the victim, Nicholas Dowey.

Among the remaining defendants is Donald Rodarte, who was fired by the department earlier this month, Held said.

Sheriff’s officials would not say why Rodarte was fired or whether the action was linked to the beating death of Nicholas Dowey. Officials did note, however, that their reasons had nothing to do with improper use of force.

Rodarte has hired a Santa Monica attorney to fight his termination, said Held, who filed a motion in court Monday to bar the Doweys’ attorneys from telling jurors of the deputy’s termination. Held said the information would unfairly prejudice a jury against Rodarte. A ruling is expected Oct. 19.

Richard Hamlish, attorney for the Dowey family, said removal of the Sheriff’s Department as a defendant is not significant because the county remains ultimately liable.

But James Dowey, father of the victim, said the judge’s decision to drop the county was a mistake.

“I want the blame focused where it ought to be,” said James Dowey. “At the county, at the department, and at those officers who the county hired and trained.”

Rodarte and nearly a dozen deputies were called to quell a loud party Sept. 13, 1997, at a Meiners Oaks home. Deputies arrived to find a bloody Dowey, 21, stumbling from the crowd, apparently from an earlier altercation.

Some witnesses have said that deputies struggled to subdue Dowey and used a metal flashlight or Mace canister to hit him over the head. An internal review showed deputies did strike Dowey, but that they did not use excessive force. Dowey died in a hospital the following day.

His parents, James and Ann Dowey, filed a federal civil rights suit earlier this year against the county, the Sheriff’s Department, and each of the 12 officers called to the scene. They also have filed a wrongful-death case in Ventura County Superior Court against owners of the property where the party was held.

But a judge Monday dismissed the county as a defendant because Dowey’s death did not result from department policy. Officers Nate Arnold, Ward Eckstein, Jim Adams and Jo Rivas were dropped earlier from the suit by both sides after attorneys agreed they were not involved in the Dowey scuffle, Held said.

Eight remain as defendants: Rodarte, Darren Yanover, Oscar Gongora, Ed Zaragosa, Pat Hardy, Landis Potter, Gil White and James Barrett. Because the men were acting in their roles as deputies when responding to the party, their employer--ultimately the county--will be responsible for paying any compensatory damages levied against them, Held said. They could be personally responsible, however, if a jury also awards punitive damages, he said.

Held also noted that with the sheriff’s office out of the suit, the Doweys’ attorneys will not be able to put the department and its policies on trial.

“If the county is not a defendant, then the plaintiffs can’t put the department on the stand and tell them they should have trained their deputies differently,” Held said.