Cathedral City agreed to pay $900,000 to a man who was beaten with a baton by a police officer until his ankle broke, a use of force the police department itself found unjustified, according to public records obtained by The Desert Sun.
The city and plaintiff Jose Lenor Garcia’s lawyers declined to disclose the amount of a previously announced lawsuit settlement. But The Desert Sun received the full settlement agreement through a public records request.
An officer tried to pull Garcia over for a traffic violation on Nov. 21, 2020, but he refused to pull over, setting off a pursuit through residential streets. During his eventual arrest, dash camera footage showed then-Officer Jeffrey Aguirre striking Garcia with a baton about five times while he was on the ground and being handcuffed by other officers.
Garcia’s lawsuit, filed in 2024, alleged Aguirre violated his civil rights by using excessive force during his arrest and the city should be held legally responsible and pay damages for not properly training the officer.
Cathedral City denied those allegations in response to the civil lawsuit. Yet a police department internal investigation led to command staff ruling Aguirre’s actions “unjustified,” according to documents previously obtained by The Desert Sun.
As part of the settlement for $900,000, Garcia agreed to dismiss his lawsuit and give up the right to pursuing claims against Aguirre or any other city official or employee.
The footage of Aguirre striking Garcia went viral in late 2022, after another police officer embroiled in his own controversy got it through a public records request and posted it online. Aguirre stopped working for the department on Sept. 29, 2022, according to records from a California police commission.
Cathedral City would not share the reason for Aguirre’s departure but did say it wasn’t related to the internal affairs investigation that determined he wasn’t justified in beating Garcia. Aguirre hadn’t worked for Cathedral City since he went on leave for an unrelated matter in April 2021, then-City Manager Charlie McClendon added.
Garcia filed the lawsuit just weeks after the Riverside County District Attorney’s office dismissed four felony charges against him, though it did charge him for evading arrest. It didn’t file criminal charges against Aguirre.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Cathedral City pays $900,000 over police beating ruled ‘unjustified’
Reporting by Ani Gasparyan, Palm Springs Desert Sun / Palm Springs Desert Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
