A Modesto woman has filed a $4.2 million wrongful death lawsuit against several Stranislaus County law enforcement and government agencies for the death of her 16-year-old relative in March.
The Modesto resident filed the lawsuit August 28th against the Ceres Police Department, The Stranislaus County Jail, the Sheriff’s and Probation Departments and the district attorney’s office.
On March 3rd the victim was among three people who were gunned down at a home near Creekside Golf Course in Modesto, California. The only survivor of the attack was the victim’s now 19-year-old sister, who hid in the bedroom closet while her brother and his friends were killed. The other victims were 31 years of age and 19 years of age.
The sister is an alleged victim of domestic violence.
The lawsuit claims that the Ceres Police Department released the woman’s boyfriend, a 31-year-old man who goes by two different names, in early February “knowing he has made threats at his former girlfriend that he would kill her family” and was a danger to them.
The woman’s boyfriend has not been arrested or charged in the homicides. He and another man have been charged for allegedly torturing and imprisoning the female survivor of the slaying from late January to early February in Ceres.
The lawsuit is seeking unspecified damages.
Do you think it is the responsibility of the Police Department to keep the family safe after they report the threats made by this man? Should the Stranislaus County Jail be held liable for releasing this dangerous man? Feel free to post your comments. You can contact one of our Gacovino Lake attorneys at 1-800-246-HURT (4878).
