Huntington Park : Suspect’s Family Files Claim

The family of a 17-year-old filed a $2-million claim Tuesday against the Huntington Park Police Department, asserting that the youth had been “repetitiously tortured” with a stun gun by two former officers.

The claim stated that Jaime Ramirez was “brutally and viciously assaulted and battered” by former officers William J. Lustig Jr., 31, and Robert Rodriguez, 25, during a Nov. 30 arrest. The claim also names as defendants the city and Chief Geano Contessotto.

Contessotto fired Lustig and Rodriguez last month. Both Lustig and Rodriguez pleaded innocent last month to felony assault charges in Los Angeles Municipal Court. The Ramirez arrest has led to a dispute between the city and the District Attorney’s office, with Dist. Atty. Ira Reiner saying he is investigating the Police Department’s practices.

Lustig and Rodriguez are accused of jabbing the youth up to a dozen times on the left thigh with a 50,000-volt stun gun, Reiner said at a press conference last month. The youth, whom police suspected of stealing a car radio, sustained several burns, Reiner said.

The claim, filed by Mario E. Diaz, a Los Angeles lawyer, also charges the defendants with false arrest, false imprisonment, conspiracy to obstruct justice and negligent supervision.