9th Circuit: Oakland police can be held responsible for injuring bystanders in reckless pursuits
OAKLAND, Calif. - The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday ruled that Oakland police can be held responsible when bystanders are injured, or killed, during reckless pursuits.
The ruling is a major victory for the family of Lolomanaia "Lolo" Soakai, who was killed in a freak accident in June 2022, when a motorcycle landed on top of him following an authorized police chase of another suspect while he was out with his mother at a taco truck.
The family's attorneys, Adante Pointer and Patrick Buelna, filed a wrongful death suit on his behalf, and have been fighting the city of Oakland, ever since.
Oakland attorneys, as well as the officers' lawyers, have argued that the city is not responsible for the officers' actions under the "qualified immunity" rule.
Historically, it's been difficult to hold police accountable in court for high-speed chases because they have had strict legal protections.
"This is a big deal because the court finally made it clear to the police and the public that if an officer engages in a reckless, high-chase pursuit, they can be held accountable for the person they injured, whether they are being pursued or an innocent bystander," Pointer told KTVU.
What this means for the case is that this issue of qualified immunity was settled before the trial begins, which does not yet have a date. The city of Oakland could also appeal this ruling, which would delay a trial even further.
The panel of appellate judges explained their decision in a 48-page opinion, which is precedent-setting in the western region.
"Because the law was clearly established before the date of the car chase that defendants' conduct was unconstitutional, defendants were not entitled to qualified immunity," the judges wrote in their 48-page opinion. "This Circuit's precedent recognizes that an officer owes a duty to all those in the vicinity, including bystanders, to limit their intent to harm to legitimate law enforcement purposes."
The judges said that in this case, Soakai's attorneys presented a reasonable argument that the Oakland police officers "affirmatively created danger by initiating a car chase that led to a crash and then acted with deliberate indifference to plaintiffs' worsening medical condition by failing to summon help."
Judge Susan Graber went further, writing that this was a "highly unusual case," where it is plausible that the "officers intentionally caused harm for reasons unrelated to any legitimate law enforcement purpose connected to the chase, and that they witnessed the crash yet drove away and later stated that they hoped that the crash caused a fatality—we affirm."
While the ruling is unprecedented in this appellate district, it is also quite limited. The ruling only applies to what is considered a reckless police pursuit.
In this case, two rookie police officers, Walid Abdelaziz and Jimmy Marin-Coronel, were chasing Arnold Azael Linaldi of Oakland, then 19, in a Nissan 350Z who they said was coming home from a sideshow on International Boulevard.
Three years ago, KTVU was the first to report from sources, which are now codified in the court record, that the officers were not authorized to chase the teen, caused the crash and then fled the scene, circling back later. They were also heard on body camera, court records indicate, laughing and saying "I hope he dies," referring to Linaldi.
The two officers did not immediately arrest Linaldi, which, to the judges, proved wasn't an important pursuit.
In fact, this particular chase was a violation of OPD policy, in what is called a "ghost chase," because Linaldi wasn't a suspected high-risk felon and the officers didn't call in to get a supervisor's permission.
Linaldi ended up crashing his car into a row of parked cars and motorcycles. That chain reaction ended up killing Soakai, who was getting some food after attending a family graduation. His mother broke her back. Two cousins went to the hospital.
Linaldi was eventually charged with vehicular manslaughter and his case is still pending.
In September 2023, sources told KTVU that the police department moved to fire Abdelaziz and Jimmy Marin-Coronel.
But their termination has not taken place as of December 2024. Oakland police said both were still employed by the department at that time.
Neither OPD nor the city immediately responded for comment about the appellate court decision on Friday.
The issue of police chases has been reinvigorated lately, especially in Oakland, where Gov. Gavin Newsom has publicly said he wants the department to loosen its rules on when police chase suspects.
Critics point to Soakai's death as one of the key reasons they want to keep a tight rein on police pursuits.
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