Alameda won't cover cop damage, man says
Oakland father filed claim after son's mistaken arrest in slaying
By Momo Chang, STAFF WRITER
Article Created: 03/15/2008 02:38:38 AM PDT
OAKLAND -- Leo Saephan's son was mistakenly arrested in connection with
a fatal shooting of an Alameda teen, and now all he wants is for the
city of Alameda to pay for the three doors the police damaged in his
Oakland home -- worth about $800 -- when police raided it the morning of
Nov. 6.
"Police have a right to do their job, but they caused all this trouble
for us," said Saephan, a postal worker. "But they also refused to pay
for the damages."
Police are largely protected from liability when they damage property
in the courseof duty. State laws protect public employees, including
police, from liability "in the execution or enforcement of any law."
They're not liable even if turns out the suspects are innocent.
In addition to the $800 worth of damage to the three doors, the claim
also seeks $3,000, which Saephan said went missing after the house was
raided. He said the money was cashed from three Social Security checks
for his parents and disabled sister.
"All aspects of the claim were investigated," said Darrell Handy, the
city of Alameda risk manager who reviewed Saephan's case, "and the
claim had no merit."
Saephan's son was arrested and charged with murder in the slaying of
15-year-old Alamedan Ichinkhorloo "Iko" Bayarsaikhan, who was killed
Halloween night.
Saephan said his son was home with him Halloween night, and charges
against Saephan's son and another boy were dropped three days after
their arrest.
Alameda police declined to comment on specifics of the case.
Saephan said his son, 16, will still have the arrest on his record
until he turns 18, though he has no previous record. Three boys have
been convicted in juvenile court in connection with the shooting, and
another three are awaiting trial.
Saephan said he rushed back from work that morning in November when he
heard police were raiding his home. He had to wait outside for several
hours while police searched his house. His parents and disabled sister
were home and sat on the living room couch while police searched.
Police, who had a warrant, kicked down three locked bedroom doors.
Saephan said they could have asked his parents to open the doors. Both
his parents, who are Iu Mien, do not speak English.
After charges were dropped against his son, Saephan said he wanted
police to pay for the doors. His claim filed at the Alameda city
attorney's office was rejected in January.
"There was no negligence by the Police Department through the events
that led to this claim," Handy said. He said he could not comment on
specifics of the claim because Saephan can still file a lawsuit.
Alameda rarely gets claims against police property damage. In the last
two fiscal years there were no claims, and Saephan's is the only one
so far this fiscal year.
Data from the Oakland city attorney's office show that police are
largely immune. Only two of 26 claims filed for police damaging
property in Oakland were paid in the last fiscal year. Five of the 26
claimaints filed lawsuits -- all were unsuccessful.
Saephan has six months from Jan. 22, when the claim was denied, to
file a lawsuit. He said he won't pursue a lawsuit since it's not worth
it for him to hire an attorney.
"If they don't pay the $800, I'm not going to be broke," Saephan said.
"(But) after they find all the facts and the truth comes out, they
still refused to pay for the damage. That really makes me upset."
Contact Momo Chang at mchang@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
or 510-208-6483.
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