The Los Angeles City Council approved a $475,000 settlement Tuesday for the family of the man shot by a police officer near the Soto Gold Line station, City News Service reported.
The officer who shot Fred Barragán on March 25, 2017 was responding to a report of gunshots fired near Breed and First Streets. Lawyers for the 35-year-old man’s family argued he was unarmed, had committed no crime, had not been given any commands or warnings, and posed no threat or danger to the public. The Los Angeles Police Department said officer Héctor Alameda opened fire on Barragán after he attempted to flee on foot and pointed a gun at the officer.
In a statement released days after the shooting, Police said “a loaded handgun was recovered from a fenced area, a short distance away from Barragán.” Later the department said the gun was forensically tied to the previous shooting and had a heat signature showing it had recently been fired, and that gunshot residue was found on Barragan’s hand.
Assigned at the time to Hollenbeck division, Alameda and his partner were in their squad car shortly after midnight on that day, going westbound on First Street when they heard “multiple shots fired in rapid succession.” Police said the shots were loud enough to be heard at the Hollenbeck station, a block away on Chicago, and were reported by area residents.
Police said Barragán fled, did not respond to officers’ demands to stop and was shot once when Barragán turned and aimed his gun at Almeda. The Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners ruled the shooting was within LAPD policy.
The settlement was approved on an 11-0 vote.
Barragán was the sixth Latino male to be shot and killed by an LAPD officer in Boyle Heights in a period of less than 14 months and the incident moved members of the community to hold a vigil and rally.
The families of two teens among the killed have pending litigation with the City and the LAPD.
