Ninth Circuit Affirms Jury Verdict By Former L.A. Police Officers Against City of Los Angeles and Chief Parks.
Three police officers brought federal civil rights claims against Los Angeles governmental entities and officials, arising from prosecutions and acquittals of criminal charges connected with the Rampart scandal. After certain defendants were dismissed from the case, the matter proceeded to a jury trial against the City of Los Angeles and Chief of Police Bernard Parks. The jury awarded each of the three officers $5,000,001. The officers were also awarded attorney’s fees of almost $2.5 million.
The Ninth Circuit, in Harper v. City of Los Angeles, Case Nos. 06-55519 and 06-55715 (9th Cir. July 14, 2008), affirmed the jury verdict. City only challenged the fee award under 42 U.S.C. sec. 1988 as being unsustainable if the judgment on the jury verdict was reversed. “They do not otherwise contest Officers’ entitlement to fees or the amount of the award. Accordingly, because we affirm the judgment, we affirm [U.S. District Judge Cormac J. Carney’s] award for attorney’s fees.” (Slip Opn., at p. 8617 n. 1.)
Given that this was only about 17% of the total recovery, the fee award wisely was not challenged by City except on a “it-falls-with liability” basis, which did not happen.