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Lawsuit Filed Against LAPD Following Deadly Crash

By Renee Nordstrand on May 17, 2010

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/05/family-of-woman-killed-in-crash-with-lapd-cruiser-files-lawsuit.html

The parents of Devin Leigh Petelski, who was killed following a car crash with a Los Angeles Police Department Patrol car on October 15, 2009, have filed a lawsuit against the police department, the LA Times reports. 

Petelski, who was 25 at the time of the incident and working as a substance abuse counselor, had entered the intersection of Venice Boulevard and Glyndon Avenue when a patrol car, driven by LAPD officers Ramon Vasquez and James Eldridge on Venice Boulevard, struck Petelski’s vehicle. The accident spun the police car, which slammed into a tree and traffic sign. Petelski was hospitalized and died two days after the accident from her injuries.

The Petelski’s lawsuit alleges negligence, citing that the patrol car was driving above the posted speed limit of forty miles per hour and that the officers were using neither lights nor sirens to warn other motorists as they sped.  According to LAPD Commander Stuart Maislin, the police department had recently implemented a policy before the crash that required all officers to use both lights and sirens when exceeding the speed limit in response to an emergency. Vasquez and Eldridge were responding to a burglary call, however they had not told dispatchers that they were responding to the call, and there was another unit that had already been dispatched to respond.

If you have lost a loved one in an a car accident due to someone else’s negligence, please contact experienced and compassionated wrongful death attorneys who will fight for your legal rights during your time of need.  At the Law Office of Renee J. Nordstrand, we offer free consultations and you won’t pay legal fees until we successfully settle your case.