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

Wrongful Death Suit Fingering Sheriff Deputy, CHP Will Proceed

Jennifer Medina’s wrongful death suit against a San Diego Sheriff deputy and California Highway Patrol officers will be allowed to proceed to trial after attempts to dismiss the case were overturned. Her husband Robert, an active duty Marine, was shot and killed by officers on November 16, 2006 Courthouse News Service reports.

Medina had recently returned from a tour of duty in Iraq and was suffering from post traumatic stress syndrome, according to a federal court ruling.

After an argument with his wife, Medina left his house and led officers on a low-speed chase through Oceanside after an attempt to pull him over on suspicion of drunken driving. When he swerved to avoid a spike strip placed by deputy Mark Ritchie in an attempt to flatten his truck’s tires, other officers in pursuit believed Medina was attempting to strike Ritchie with his vehicle and radioed in an attempted “assault with a deadly weapon.”

Highway Patrol officers eventually forced Medina onto a dirt strip alongside the freeway, where they boxed in his truck with patrol vehicles. Ritchie also rammed the truck with his patrol vehicle.

“By this time, over a dozen officers had converged on the scene and several officers and deputies had taken up positions around the decedent's truck and in close proximity to it,” said the ruling.

Ritchie approached the vehicle with his gun drawn and was able to make eye contact with Medina, observing his hands on the steering wheel. He fired several shots at the truck’s tires and ordered Medina out of the vehicle.

Officers then claim Medina turned the truck’s tires toward Ritchie and attempted to move the vehicle. They then proceeded to shoot him a total of 37 times. He was pulled from the truck alive, but died a short time later as a result of the gunshot wounds.

Mrs. Medina filed a wrongful death complaint, which was dismissed by U.S. District Court Judge John Houston except as concerned Ritchie and the County of San Diego. But that ruling was overturned by Judge Anthony Battaglia, who ruled that there is sufficient evidence to support a Fourth Amendment claim of excessive force.

“Plaintiff's allegations that Defendant Ritchie's shooting of the decedent was unreasonably excessive under the circumstances and with intent to harm unrelated to a legitimate law enforcement purpose is plausible,” wrote Battaglia, who rejected motions to dismiss by both Ritchie and Highway Patrol officer Leo Nava, who also fired into Medina’s vehicle.

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

Previous article

Drinking Sudden Death on All Saint’s Day in Quixote’s church-themed interior

Seeking solace, spiritual and otherwise

Jennifer Medina’s wrongful death suit against a San Diego Sheriff deputy and California Highway Patrol officers will be allowed to proceed to trial after attempts to dismiss the case were overturned. Her husband Robert, an active duty Marine, was shot and killed by officers on November 16, 2006 Courthouse News Service reports.

Medina had recently returned from a tour of duty in Iraq and was suffering from post traumatic stress syndrome, according to a federal court ruling.

After an argument with his wife, Medina left his house and led officers on a low-speed chase through Oceanside after an attempt to pull him over on suspicion of drunken driving. When he swerved to avoid a spike strip placed by deputy Mark Ritchie in an attempt to flatten his truck’s tires, other officers in pursuit believed Medina was attempting to strike Ritchie with his vehicle and radioed in an attempted “assault with a deadly weapon.”

Highway Patrol officers eventually forced Medina onto a dirt strip alongside the freeway, where they boxed in his truck with patrol vehicles. Ritchie also rammed the truck with his patrol vehicle.

“By this time, over a dozen officers had converged on the scene and several officers and deputies had taken up positions around the decedent's truck and in close proximity to it,” said the ruling.

Ritchie approached the vehicle with his gun drawn and was able to make eye contact with Medina, observing his hands on the steering wheel. He fired several shots at the truck’s tires and ordered Medina out of the vehicle.

Officers then claim Medina turned the truck’s tires toward Ritchie and attempted to move the vehicle. They then proceeded to shoot him a total of 37 times. He was pulled from the truck alive, but died a short time later as a result of the gunshot wounds.

Mrs. Medina filed a wrongful death complaint, which was dismissed by U.S. District Court Judge John Houston except as concerned Ritchie and the County of San Diego. But that ruling was overturned by Judge Anthony Battaglia, who ruled that there is sufficient evidence to support a Fourth Amendment claim of excessive force.

“Plaintiff's allegations that Defendant Ritchie's shooting of the decedent was unreasonably excessive under the circumstances and with intent to harm unrelated to a legitimate law enforcement purpose is plausible,” wrote Battaglia, who rejected motions to dismiss by both Ritchie and Highway Patrol officer Leo Nava, who also fired into Medina’s vehicle.

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

Car looters crash in Rancho Santa Fe

Next Article

Man Attempts to Flee Border Patrol By Tow Truck

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.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader