Council OKs Settlements in Officer Rape Cases

The Los Angeles City Council has approved $685,000 in payouts to settle four lawsuits, including two filed by women who said a uniformed police officer raped them.

One lawsuit involved a promising teen-age tennis player who lost a chance for a bright professional career when a city utility truck struck her, crushing her legs against a parked car.

In the rape lawsuits, one woman will receive $195,000, the other $95,000. The officer involved in the separate incidents in 1991 was later convicted of rape under color of authority and sentenced to state prison.

According to a city attorney’s report, Officer Gariner Beasley raped the women during traffic stops, after threatening to take them to jail unless they had sex with him.

“These cases should be settled for the amounts indicated because there is clear legal precedent for the city being held liable for the acts of Officer Beasley,” Deputy City Atty. Cory Brente said.

The council set aside $150,000 for tennis player Brahna Pastorini, who was 14 at the time of a 1990 accident at the Van Nuys/Sherman Oaks recreation center. Pastorini was ranked in the top three in California and top 10 in the nation for her age. Two independent tennis experts said she was headed for a lucrative pro career.

She continues to play competitive tennis and won the city high school championship last year. But she must wear a leg brace and has lost the stamina she once had.

“The city of Los Angeles would be found liable for this accident,” according to a city attorney’s report. “A jury could award the plaintiff an amount in excess of the proposed settlement amount.”

The council also appropriated $245,000 to settle a lawsuit over damage caused by a sanitation employee who lost control of a garbage truck that crashed into two cars and a house in Brentwood in 1987.