Santiago v. City of Eugene

1

OFELIA HERNANDEZ SANTIAGO, Plaintiff, v. CITY OF EUGENE, SAMUEL TYKOL, and JOHN DOES 1-3, Defendants.

No. 6:21-cv-01715-MK

United States District Court, D. Oregon

August 19, 2024

FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATION

Mustafa T. Kasubhai (he/him) United States Magistrate Judge

On November 29, 2021, Plaintiff Ofelia Hernandez Santiago (“Plaintiff”) filed this § 1983 action as a personal representative of the Estate of Eliborio Rodrigues Jr. Plaintiff alleges that Defendant Officer Samuel Tykol violated Mr. Rodrigues's Fourth Amendment rights. Pl.'s Compl. ¶¶ 41-66, ECF No. 1 (First and Second Claims for Relief). Plaintiff also alleges supplemental state law claims against Officer Tykol, the City of Eugene, and John Doe Supervisors 1-3 (collectively, “Defendants”). Pl. Compl. ¶¶ 67-76 (Fifth and Sixth Claims for Relief).^[1] On September 1, 2023, Defendants filed a Motion for Summary Judgment. Defs.' Mot. for Summ. J. ECF No. 25 (“Defs.' Mot.”). The Court heard Oral Argument on February 15, 2024. For the reasons below Defendants' Motion (ECF No. 25) should be granted as to the First and Second Claims for Relief, granted as to the Fifth and Sixth Claims against the City of Eugene, and denied as to the Fifth and Sixth Claims against Officer Tykol. Plaintiff's Motion to Take Judicial Notice of Discrete Facts (ECF No. 45) is DENIED.^[2]

BACKGROUND

This case arises out of a November 30, 2019, encounter between Mr Rodrigues and a City of Eugene police officer. Within minutes, this encounter ultimately resulted in Officer Tykol's use of deadly force against Mr. Rodrigues. At 12:30 a.m., Officer Tykol was conducting routine patrol in his vehicle when he observed Mr. Rodrigues walking along Acacia Street- located in a residential neighborhood. Decl of Samuel Tykol in Supp. of Defs.' Mot. for Summ. J. ¶ 4, ECF No. 31 (“Tykol Decl.”). A home security camera showed Mr. Rodrigues walking near the shoulder of the street when Officer Tykol's police cruiser drove past him. Decl. of Koren Evans in Supp. of Defs.' Mot. for Summ. J. Ex. 1, at 1:51-2:08, ECF No. 28 (“Evans Decl. Ex. 1”).

When asked about his initial suspicions of Mr. Rodrigues, Officer Tykol testified:

He was in all black in a quiet neighborhood in the middle of the night. There was no flashlight or reflective vest, which I had worked that portion of town for a couple of years, and most people that walk around in that neighborhood and that area of town kind of have that-either the vest or the flashlight if they're out walking late, or maybe they're walking a dog, things like that.

Decl. of Michelle R. Burrows Ex. 23, at 46:5-12, ECF No. 47-18 (“Tykol Dep.”). But Mr. Rodrigues did have a flashlight-as demonstrated by Officer Tykol's body-worn camera footage. Decl. of Samuel Tykol in Supp. of Defs.' Mot. for Summ. J. Ex. 1, at 00:38, ECF No. 32 (“Tykol Decl. Ex. 1”); Decl. of Ben Miller in Supp. of Defs.' Mot. for Summ. J. Ex. 1, at 282:21-283:7, ECF No. 27 (“Miller Decl. Ex. 1”). Officer Tykol testified that Mr. Rodrigues's “behavior [did not] match the neighborhood.” Tykol Dep. at 82:10-11.

Officer Tykol testified that he suspected Mr. Rodrigues of violating Or. Rev. Stat. § 814.070 and Eugene Code (EC) 4.830.^[3] Tykol Dep. at 50:19-51:2. Officer Tykol made a U-turn on the dead-end street before parking and exiting his vehicle to stop Mr. Rodrigues. Id. at 48:1214. Officer Tykol approached Mr. Rodrigues-who was standing by a recycling can on the curb-and asked him why he was walking in the road, rather than using the sidewalk. Tykol Decl. Ex. 1, at 00:38-00:42. Mr. Rodrigues explained that there was no sidewalk where he was walking and that he did not see when a sidewalk became available. Id. at 0:47-0:57. Mr. Rodrigues then said, regarding why Officer Tykol stopped him, “If that would have been the case, then the reason you stopped me should have been over there, no?” Id. at 0:57-1:01. Officer Tykol responded, “No, I can stop you whenever I deem necessary,” before asking Mr. Rodrigues twice if he had any identification on him.^[4] Id. at 1:01-1:05. During this time, Mr. Rodrigues was attempting to put an empty bottle into an empty trash bag. Id. at 1:05-1:15. At this point, Officer Tykol radioed for backup. Id. at 1:10-1:16. Officer Tykol testified that he wanted backup because Mr. Rodrigues was not acknowledging him, and Officer Tykol thought Mr. Rodrigues was concealing his identity. Tykol Dep. at 81:17-22.

Mr. Rodrigues dropped the empty bottle and bent over to pick it up. Tykol Decl. Ex. 1, at 1:13-1:15. Officer Tykol told Mr. Rodrigues he was not free to go and asked again if he had an Id. Id. at 1:15-1:18. After three seconds with no response, Officer Tykol stepped toward Mr. Rodrigues, reached for his trash bag, and said for Mr. Rodrigues to “do this, put this down” while he grabbed hold of Mr. Rodrigues's arm above his elbow. Id. at 1:21-1:22. Mr. Rodrigues responded, without raising his voice, “Negative. Sir, may I speak to a sergeant?” Id. at 1:221:25. Officer Tykol began pulling Mr. Rodrigues away from the recycling can and over near the curb. Id. at 1:26-1:28. Mr. Rodrigues said, “You cannot be touching me.” Id. at 1:28-1:29. Simultaneously, Officer Tykol ordered Mr. Rodrigues to sit down three times in the span of four seconds. Id. at 1:27-1:31. Without sitting down, Mr. Rodrigues again asked, without raising his voice, to speak to a sergeant. Id. at 1:31-1:37. Officer Tykol told Mr. Rodrigues again to sit down. Id. at 1:35. It was then that Officer Tykol called for Code 3 cover. Id. at 1:37-1:39. “Code 3 cover” means an emergency response is required, and backup officers should respond as quickly as possible. Miller Decl. Ex. 1, at 59:6-11. Officer Tykol testified that he called for Code 3 cover to be proactive just in case the encounter rose to the level of a fight or use of force. Tykol Dep. at 130:2-10. Officer Tykol testified that he did not feel threatened that Mr. Rodrigues would harm him during this part of the encounter. Id. at 85:3-6, 111:20-24.

Officer Tykol told Mr. Rodrigues he would call a sergeant if Mr. Rodrigues sat down. Tykol Decl. Ex. 1, at 1:40-1:43. From the time that Officer Tykol pulled Mr. Rodrigues over to the curb to this moment, Mr. Rodrigues was standing still, and his arms were not moving. Id. at 1:28-1:44. Mr. Rodrigues called out, “Can somebody call a real officer, please?” Id. at 1:441:45. Officer Tykol then grabbed the back of Mr. Rodrigues's sweatshirt near his neck and pulled him down to the ground. Id. at 1:45-1:47. Mr. Rodrigues fell sideways on the ground with his torso propped up slightly. Id. at 1:47. Officer Tykol rolled Mr. Rodrigues onto his knees and pushed Mr. Rodrigues's head toward the ground before Mr. Rodrigues asked, “Am I being detained?” Id. at 1:47-48. Officer Tykol tried to restrain Mr. Rodrigues's right hand and responded, “Yes, you're not free to go.” Id. at 1:48-1:50. Mr. Rodrigues asked why not, and Officer Tykol replied, “Because. Give me your arm. You're under arrest.” Id. at 1:50-1:55. Mr. Rodrigues shifted to a sitting position and said, “I will sit down.” Id. at 1:55-1:58. Mr. Rodrigues would not put his hands behind his back. Id. When Mr. Rodrigues asked again why he was under arrest, Officer Tykol said, “For interfering.” Id. at 1:58-1:59.

Officer Tykol shifted behind Mr. Rodrigues and placed his hands and knee on Mr. Rodrigues's back. Id. at 2:00-2:02. At this point, Mr. Rodrigues began yelling, “Neighbors! Hey!” Id. at 2:03-2:07. Officer Tykol managed to get Mr. Rodrigues down flat on his stomach, but Mr. Rodrigues would not put his hands behind his back. Id. at 2:06-2:13. Officer Tykol warned Mr. Rodrigues that he was going to use his pepper spray if Mr. Rodrigues did not put his hands behind his back. Id. at 2:14-2:17. Officer Tykol later testified that he was not afraid that he was in imminent danger when he was trying to pull Mr. Rodrigues's hands back. Tykol Dep. at 112:20-24. Officer Tykol then attempted to pepper spray Mr. Rodrigues, but the spray appeared to be ineffective. Tykol Decl. Ex. 1, at 2:17-2:26; Tykol Dep. at 96:15-17. Officer Tykol then radioed “fighting with one.” Tykol Dep. at 132:21-133:1-3; Decl. of Chris Stetson in Supp. of Defs.' Mot. for Summ. J. Ex. 1, 2:28-2:30, ECF No. 38 (“Stetson Decl. Ex. 1”). Officer Tykol and Mr. Rodrigues got into a struggle before Officer Tykol's body-worn camera appeared to become jostled and stopped recording the encounter. Tykol Decl. Ex. 1, at 02:41-2:44.

Officer Tykol testified that, immediately after the video cut off, Mr. Rodrigues “popped up” and began running from him. Tykol Dep. at 133:9-21. At this time, Officer Tykol's microphone disconnected. Id. at 136:23-137:3. Officer Tykol began to pursue Mr. Rodrigues on foot. Id. at 215:3-13. By the time Officer Tykol caught up to him, Mr. Rodrigues had turned around and got into a “bladed stance.” Tykol Dep. at 216:10-14. Mr. Rodrigues began throwing punches at Officer Tykol, and Officer Tykol threw punches back at him. Id. at 226:1-7. Both Mr. Rodrigues and Officer Tykol struck each other during the incident. Id. at 226:17-227:8. Officer Tykol tried to gain control of Mr. Rodrigues's arms by using a technique called “pummeling”- which occurs when one grabs a person's upper arms or forearms to hold the person from being able to strike. Id. at 230:19-231:1. Officer Tykol lost grip of Mr. Rodrigues, and Mr. Rodrigues ran again. Id. at 233:9-16. Officer Tykol then tackled Mr. Rodrigues to the ground. Id. at 234:22-235:8.

Initially Officer Tykol was on top of Mr. Rodrigues. Id. at 234:9. Soon after, Mr. Rodrigues bumped Officer Tykol onto his back, and Mr. Rodrigues rolled on top of him. Id. at 240:3-241:8. Officer Tykol attempted to control Mr. Rodrigues by wrapping his legs around Mr....