Claim Filed in Fatal Shooting by Officer

The family of an East Los Angeles man shot and killed last month by a Pasadena policeman has filed a claim against that city seeking $10 million in damages.

Officer Steve Arcand shot Javier Quezada Jr., 22, several times Jan. 23 in the parking lot of Las Encinas Hospital after Quezada allegedly charged at the policeman with a pair of 9-inch scissors.

Quezada, who had been taking medication for depression for more than a year, was standing at the edge of the lot with his parents, who were trying to persuade him to go inside for a psychiatric screening, his family said.

Police were called after Quezada allegedly began arguing with his parents and the hospital staff, officials said.

When Arcand arrived, police said, Quezada did not listen to the officer’s commands and was poised to attack. Fearing for his safety, the officer shot Quezada twice when he continued to move toward him, police said. Authorities said six independent witnesses corroborated their version of the shooting.

But in the claim against the city, Quezada’s family said he had not threatened anyone and only clutched his mother in fear for his safety when the officer arrived. The claim says Arcand shot Quezada as he lay wounded and attempted to rise to his feet.

The officer should have used nonlethal means to defuse the situation, said the family’s attorney, Luis Carillo, who filed the claim last week on behalf of Javier and Elsa Quezada.

The Pasadena Police Department is investigating the shooting with the district attorney’s office, said Cmdr. Janet Pope. She declined to comment further.

Quezada was a loading worker for United Parcel Service and a musician. His friends and bandmates held a benefit concert for Quezada’s family and are planning a vigil Sunday evening in front of Pasadena City Hall.