Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Cop who shot unarmed man faces civil lawsuit

Parole violator was likely giving up when shot with submachine gun

The San Diego police officer who shot and killed an unarmed man in January 2013 is not entitled to immunity in a civil lawsuit filed by the deceased man's wife.

On October 25, a federal appellate court ruled that officer Kristopher Walb could be held liable in a civil lawsuit filed by Lydia Lopez, the wife of then-27-year-old Angel Lopez, whom Walb shot and killed while trying to serve an arrest warrant against Lopez.

As reported by the Reader in a December 2015 cover story, Lopez was a documented gang member who had been arrested carrying a firearm in the years before his death. On January 17, 2013, Lopez's parole officer received an anonymous tip on the whereabouts of Lopez, who was wanted on a parole violation. The informant told the officer that Lopez was carrying a gun with him.

Sponsored
Sponsored

As reported previously, police failed to properly vet the informant, who turned out to be Lopez's drug dealer, Alec Pojas. In the days leading up to the tip, Pojas and Lopez had argued, according to an eyewitness at the scene of the officer-involved shooting.

In response to the tip, SWAT teams converged on an apartment building near San Diego State University, where Lopez was staying. Officers approached Lopez. He ran, ascending the staircase toward the third-floor apartment. While in the hallway, Walb, accompanied by two officers, ordered Lopez to raise his arms and get down on the ground. Officers say Lopez began tugging at his shorts while turning toward the officers. Officer Walb fired six bullets from his MP5 submachine gun, striking Lopez in the back of the head and in his right shoulder blade. The officers later searched Lopez and found he was not carrying a weapon.

Upon examining the body, Lopez's wife discovered burn marks on Lopez's back that ran in a vertical direction. The kill shot entered on the back lower left side of Lopez's head and exited on the top left side of his forehead, indicating that he was in fact kneeling. She hired an attorney who later filed a wrongful death lawsuit on her behalf.

According to court documents obtained by the Reader, a forensics expert also disputed the claim that Lopez was turning toward the officers with his hands in his pockets. The trajectory of the bullets revealed that Lopez was likely following police orders and was in the act of kneeling when Walb fired the shots.

Earlier this year, a federal judge ruled that Walb did not qualify for immunity in the case; that, while reviewing the case in the most favorable light for Lopez, there existed "a genuine dispute of material fact as to whether Walb violated the Fourth Amendment."

The city appealed the decision. On October 25 an appellate court denied the appeal.

Reads the October 25 ruling, "Viewing the facts in the light most favorable to Lopez, a reasonable jury could conclude from the physical evidence that Lopez was not facing the officers, did not make a threatening gesture, and was in the process of complying with the officers’ commands to get down when he was shot. Under those circumstances, Walb’s decision to shoot Lopez would constitute an unreasonable use of deadly force in violation of the Fourth Amendment.

The lawsuit will return to the federal district court. A trial is expected to take place next year.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Tyler Farr, Blue Water Film Festival, Mustache Bash

Events March 21-March 23, 2024

The San Diego police officer who shot and killed an unarmed man in January 2013 is not entitled to immunity in a civil lawsuit filed by the deceased man's wife.

On October 25, a federal appellate court ruled that officer Kristopher Walb could be held liable in a civil lawsuit filed by Lydia Lopez, the wife of then-27-year-old Angel Lopez, whom Walb shot and killed while trying to serve an arrest warrant against Lopez.

As reported by the Reader in a December 2015 cover story, Lopez was a documented gang member who had been arrested carrying a firearm in the years before his death. On January 17, 2013, Lopez's parole officer received an anonymous tip on the whereabouts of Lopez, who was wanted on a parole violation. The informant told the officer that Lopez was carrying a gun with him.

Sponsored
Sponsored

As reported previously, police failed to properly vet the informant, who turned out to be Lopez's drug dealer, Alec Pojas. In the days leading up to the tip, Pojas and Lopez had argued, according to an eyewitness at the scene of the officer-involved shooting.

In response to the tip, SWAT teams converged on an apartment building near San Diego State University, where Lopez was staying. Officers approached Lopez. He ran, ascending the staircase toward the third-floor apartment. While in the hallway, Walb, accompanied by two officers, ordered Lopez to raise his arms and get down on the ground. Officers say Lopez began tugging at his shorts while turning toward the officers. Officer Walb fired six bullets from his MP5 submachine gun, striking Lopez in the back of the head and in his right shoulder blade. The officers later searched Lopez and found he was not carrying a weapon.

Upon examining the body, Lopez's wife discovered burn marks on Lopez's back that ran in a vertical direction. The kill shot entered on the back lower left side of Lopez's head and exited on the top left side of his forehead, indicating that he was in fact kneeling. She hired an attorney who later filed a wrongful death lawsuit on her behalf.

According to court documents obtained by the Reader, a forensics expert also disputed the claim that Lopez was turning toward the officers with his hands in his pockets. The trajectory of the bullets revealed that Lopez was likely following police orders and was in the act of kneeling when Walb fired the shots.

Earlier this year, a federal judge ruled that Walb did not qualify for immunity in the case; that, while reviewing the case in the most favorable light for Lopez, there existed "a genuine dispute of material fact as to whether Walb violated the Fourth Amendment."

The city appealed the decision. On October 25 an appellate court denied the appeal.

Reads the October 25 ruling, "Viewing the facts in the light most favorable to Lopez, a reasonable jury could conclude from the physical evidence that Lopez was not facing the officers, did not make a threatening gesture, and was in the process of complying with the officers’ commands to get down when he was shot. Under those circumstances, Walb’s decision to shoot Lopez would constitute an unreasonable use of deadly force in violation of the Fourth Amendment.

The lawsuit will return to the federal district court. A trial is expected to take place next year.

Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Hip-hop artist Don Elway makes movies for his music

Not Ordinary EP tells a story of life on the streets
Next Article

Celebrate Holi, Borrego Springs Music Festival

Events March 23-March 27, 2024
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.