Lawsuit Filed in Lake Arrowhead Police Related Death

A wrongful death lawsuit was filed in San Bernardino Superior Court, August 30, by Alfred and Carol Kephart in the death of their son, Allen, who was killed after an encounter with local deputies in Lake Arrowhead, Calif. The lawsuit alleges Allen Kephart's civil rights were violated after being ordered out of his car at gunpoint, thrown face first to the ground and Tasered repeatedly in the upper back, neck and head.

Although the San Bernardino County Sheriff's department maintains that the encounter began when Kephart ran a stop sign, the suit says the encounter began when Kephart honked at Deputy Ismael Diaz after Diaz pulled in front of Kephart at an intersection. According to the suit, Diaz was angered and turned on his police vehicle lights attempting to pull Kephart over.

The suit names the County of San Bernardino, the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department, Deputy Ismael Diaz, Deputy Michael Gardea and Sergeant Bryan Lane as defendants.

A representative for the San Bernardino County Sheriff's department said that they had not received the lawsuit yet.

Reason.tv covered this story as details were just emerging and can be seen in The Killing of Allen Kephart: How the Police Lost the Trust of a Law-and-Order Town.

Comments

[The Other Kevin]

Did anything else happen?

[Huge Assclown]

Yeah, 10 comments.

[Pip]

"the suit says the encounter began when Kephart honked at Deputy Ismael Diaz after Diaz pulled in front of Kephart at an intersection. According to the suit, Diaz was angered"

Doesn't surprise me. On monday, while crossing an 4-way-stop itersection (I clearly had the right-of-way per state law) a fucking pig in a crown vic looked right at me as he blows the stop sign missing me by just a couple of feet.

[Mad Scientist]

Count yourself lucky that he didn't hit you and then cite you for the accident.

[R C Dean]

Who the fuck cares how it started?

Since when is an appropriate response to running stop sign to (a) point your gun at the driver, (b) drag him out of the car (c) thrown him on the ground and (d) taser him to death.

[Almanian]

BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALK....

DEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEETTTRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIICK!!!

[Alan Kellogg]

What can we expect, Contempt of Cop is a death penalty offense.

[-]

the suit says the encounter began when Kephart honked at Deputy Ismael Diaz

Lawsuits never lie!

[heller]

Turn the phone off, bitch puddin.

[Huge Assclown]

Oh "heller," next to "Episiarch" you're the coolest, most edgiest kid here! I think you're dreamy!

[Chatroom Crackpot]

Cops don't either.

[thexjib]

Thank you REASON.

[BigT]

Ismael Diaz should be burned alive on the 50 yard line at halftime of the Super Bowl.

[Huge Assclown]

Are you one of those nonviolent libertarians?

[Kant feel Pietzsche]

Appropriate handle. Are you one of those non-libertarian libertarians?

[murmur55]

I read the report. This is probably a restraint death of an obese individual held in the prone position, +/- Taser effects.

Google: YouTube - Positional asphyxia 2003

#DOJ statement in 1995 on avoidable death in restraint or custody: Positional Asphyxia and Sudden Death http://bit.ly/fWyJKg

Asphyxial Death During Prone Restraint Revisited: 21 Cases http://bit.ly/p86G5F

Prone restraint?, if used at all, should last only seconds. There should NOT be a "struggle" on the ground. People die very quickly in this position.

Negligent homicide by the police. That's how you would be charged for a similar event. The police have a higher degree of responsibility.

[murmur55]

I read the autopsy report. This is probably a restraint death of an obese individual held in the prone position, +/- Taser effects.

Google: YouTube - Positional asphyxia 2003

#DOJ statement in 1995 on avoidable death in restraint or custody: Positional Asphyxia and Sudden Death http://bit.ly/fWyJKg

Asphyxial Death During Prone Restraint Revisited: 21 Cases http://bit.ly/p86G5F

Prone restraint?, if used at all, should last only seconds. There should NOT be a "struggle" on the ground. People die very quickly in this position.

Negligent homicide by the police. That's how you would be charged for a similar event. The police have a higher degree of responsibility.

[murmur55]

State troopers kneeling on man's back when he was handcuffed asphyxiated him to death, and Wyoming must pay half a million dollars in compensation. http://bit.ly/q0Euds