LOS ANGELES : Council Settles Final Suit Over 1986 Police Raid

The Los Angeles City Council has approved a $152,000 settlement in a lawsuit filed by a woman who accused police of unlawfully detaining her.

The settlement marks the final payout in a series of lawsuits related to a 1986 police raid in El Sereno, which left a family’s apartment trashed and one man with a broken nose.

Overall, the council has agreed to pay $550,000 to the Larez family to avoid trials that could result in judgments higher than those awarded by other juries, said Stephen Yagman, the plaintiffs’ attorney.

Keiko Larez charged that police violated her civil rights when she was taken to the Hollenbeck station five days before the July 13, 1986, raid on her family’s home.

Police were investigating a gang-related murder in which her brother Eddie was as a suspect. Their father’s nose was broken when police arrived at their home with a search warrant. Keiko Larez contended that officers handcuffed her; a detective denied that and said she went to the station voluntarily.

A jury had ordered the detective to pay $55,000 in damages. The city appealed and a new trial was ordered, but City Atty. James Hahn urged the council to accept the settlement.