Wrongly Convicted Man Files Lawsuit

An Oxnard man wrongly convicted of murder has filed a federal lawsuit against Santa Barbara prosecutors and police officers, accusing them of negligence and conspiracy to keep him in prison.

After four years behind bars, Efren Cruz, 27, was freed Oct. 12 when a judge ruled that credible evidence suggests that another man pulled the trigger during a 1997 gang shooting in downtown Santa Barbara.

Last week, Cruz filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles that accuses nearly a dozen law enforcement officials of violating his civil rights before and after his trial.

The lawsuit accuses Santa Barbara County Dist. Atty. Thomas W. Sneddon and three senior prosecutors of conspiracy and malicious prosecution for allegedly withholding evidence favorable to Cruz.

Prosecutors and six Santa Barbara police officers are accused of negligent investigation for allegedly failing to pursue evidence that indicated that another suspect was the killer.

The lawsuit also charges Senior Deputy Dist. Atty. Hilary Dozer, lead prosecutor on the case, with defamation for blaming Cruz in the media “when he knew or should have known that there was great doubt that [Cruz] was [the] actual shooter.”

Cruz is seeking more than $120 million in damages.

“I think that my client is entitled to be compensated for 4 1/2 years in Pelican Bay,” said Thousand Oaks attorney Richard Hamlish, referring to the maximum-security prison.

“To serve there and be innocent of a crime, the kid’s life was ruined,” Hamlish said.

Sneddon and other law enforcement officials named in the lawsuit could not be reached Wednesday. Dozer and Santa Barbara County Counsel Shane Stark said they had not seen the lawsuit and could not comment.

The suit stems from Cruz’s arrest after a shooting at Santa Barbara Parking Lot 10 on Jan. 26, 1997. Two groups of young men--some Oxnard gang members--exchanged taunts in the parking structure at Anacapa and Ortega streets, and one of the men pulled a gun.

Michael Torres, a 23-year-old Santa Barbara resident, died of a gunshot wound to the head. Santa Ynez resident James Miranda, 21 at the time, was seriously injured but recovered.

Cruz, the only one to not flee the scene, was arrested, and police found a chrome .38-caliber revolver. Forensic tests revealed that Cruz had gunpowder residue on his hands, and a driver leaving the parking structure identified him as the shooter.

Cruz was out of town Wednesday and could not be reached for comment. But Adela Reyes, his mother, said the lawsuit was not about money as much as sending a message to Santa Barbara authorities.

“People make mistakes,” Reyes said. “They had the opportunity to say they made a mistake. But they are still saying Efren was the real shooter. Hopefully this will open their eyes.”

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Times staff writer David Rosenzweig contributed to this report.