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The city of South Pasadena has reached a settlement in a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the mother of actress Vanessa Marquez, who was shot dead by police at her home during a welfare check of 2018 when authorities claimed she wielded what officers believed to be a gun. .
Marquez’s mother, Delia McElfresh, filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles federal court last August against the city of South Pasadena, its former police chief and several officers. The lawsuit alleged bad tactics and police overreaction to the actress’ death.
“Any loss of life is tragic,” South Pasadena Mayor Diana Mahmud said in a recent statement. “However, I can now report that the parties have reached a mutually acceptable settlement in the amount of $ 450,000 in order to save the parties the costs associated with protracted litigation.”
Most of the cost of the litigation and settlement will come from the city’s risk pool, South Pasadena said in a press release.
The lawsuit – which also alleged illegal entry, unreasonable detention, excessive force and a violation of due process – did not specify the amount of damages sought. A lawsuit that was a precursor to a separate lawsuit filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court in June was aimed at $ 20 million. As part of the settlement, all claims will be dismissed with prejudice, the city said.
Marquez, known for her roles on the “ER” TV show and the “Stand and Deliver” movie, had a history of epileptic seizures and had mental health issues. After a friend made a call on August 30, 2018, requesting the welfare check, police entered the 49-year-old woman’s residence in the 1100 block of Fremont Avenue and woke her up, and she suffered a seizure in her bedroom, according to a police officer. body camera video.
County mental health officers and clinician spoke with Marquez for more than an hour in an attempt to persuade her to accept medical help, authorities said. When she refused, officers informed her that she was placed under a so-called hold 5150 to unwittingly take her to hospital. Marquez protested and refused to be detained, according to body camera video.
The video shows Marquez reaching into a bag and pulling out what appeared to be a pair of scissors before reaching for another object.
A policeman is then heard in the video yelling that Marquez had a gun as he pulls out his own pistol and retreats from the bedroom. At one point, Marquez is heard shouting what sounds like “Kill me”.
The police retreat to the apartment stairs, yelling at Marquez to speak to them and drop the gun. A few minutes later, Marquez emerges at the top of the stairs with an object in his hand. The police shout at her again to drop what she is holding before shooting several times. Authorities later said a BB pistol that looked like a handgun was found next to her.
The lawsuit alleged that Marquez was shot “when she was not facing the officers, when the officers were at a safe distance from her and there was no imminent threat of serious injury or death to the officers. agents or other persons ”.
“The situation called for de-escalation and there were several options available to officers if they were in fact concerned about Ms. Marquez’s well-being,” the lawsuit said. “There was no urgency to forcibly remove Ms. Marquez from her home. Instead of defusing the situation, other police officers broke into his building, ”including one with an AR-22 rifle.
In March, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office decided not to press charges against two police officers involved in the shooting, saying they acted legally by firing 12 rounds at Marquez because they reasonably believed that she posed an imminent threat of serious injury or death. .
Marquez made headlines in 2017 when she accused George Clooney, her ER teammate, of helping her blacklist her from the series. Clooney has denied the allegations.
In the years leading up to his death, Marquez used social media to refer to his struggles with celiac disease and seizures. She wrote on Facebook in March 2018 that she was “terminally ill”. She had also posted on social media in the months leading up to the fatal encounter her desire to die and her purchase of an air pistol that looked like a Glock.
Times editors Colleen Shalby and Hannah Fry contributed to this report.
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