Father of Teen Shot by Pasadena Police Settles with City

The father of a 19-year-old man fatally shot by Pasadena police following a false 911 call of an armed robbery agreed today to settle a wrongful death lawsuit against the city, court records show.

Kenneth McDade agreed to a settlement as trial was to get underway in the federal civil rights litigation before U.S. District Judge Dolly M. Gee.

No further details were disclosed.

The young man's mother, Anya Slaughter, settled her part of the lawsuit with the city last week.

Kendrec McDade was shot eight times by Pasadena police officers Mathew Griffin and Jeffrey Newlen in March 2012, according to court documents.

McDade was unarmed and the caller, Oscar Carrillo-Gonzalez, later admitted to lying in order to get a faster police response and was convicted of making a false report.

Carrillo pleaded guilty in June 2013 to two misdemeanor charges and was sentenced to 180 days split between jail and a Caltrans work crew.

"The false armed robbery call by Mr. Carrillo-Gonzalez set off a series of events that ultimately led to the death of then-suspect Kendrec McDade," Pasadena city spokesman William H. Boyer said in a statement last year.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office conducted an investigation and concluded that "the officers acted in lawful self-defense and defense of others." An internal review by the police department concluded that the officers had acted within departmental policy in the shooting.

McDade's shooting led to an outcry from relatives and activists who claimed police used excessive force by opening fire on the unarmed man.

Police said the officers believed McDade had a weapon, because Carrillo- Gonzalez told a 911 dispatcher he had been robbed of his backpack by armed assailants.

Carrillo-Gonzalez later admitted that he never saw a gun but had lied to the 911 operator because he was mad and believed that officers would respond more quickly if they thought a gun was involved.

—City News Service