Tentative Settlement Reached Over Malibu Deputy Assault Claims

MALIBU, CA — A man has reached a tentative settlement in his lawsuit against Los Angeles County that alleges he was assaulted and battered for no reason while walking in Malibu in 2022, although defense attorneys say he was holding a machete and ignored demands by sheriff's deputies to drop it.

Attorneys for Adrian Martinez filed court papers on Monday with Santa Monica Superior Court Judge Mark H. Epstein notifying him of a "conditional" resolution of the case that is subject to approval by the county claims board and the Board of Supervisors. No terms were divulged.

According to the suit, Martinez was walking near the area of Pacific Coast Highway and Coastline Drive on Feb. 20, 2022, when he was assaulted and battered, including with the use of a police projectile, leaving him with "severe and traumatic" injuries.

The suit, filed in August 2023, makes no mention of a machete and states that Martinez posed no threats to the deputies and did not resist arrest.

However, attorneys for the county stated in their court papers that Martinez did indeed hold a machete and that he was shot with the projectile after he disobeyed numerous demands by deputies to drop the weapon.

City News Service