On November 15, 1997, Alhambra Police Officer Keith
Eggleston, while in route to back-up another officer, collided with a
pedestrian crossing the street. As a result of the collision, the
pedestrian received fatal injuries. Multiple investigations took place
as a result of the traffic accident, including a criminal investigation
by the California Highway Patrol, the Los Angeles County District
Attorney’s Office, and administrative investigations by the Department
of Motor Vehicles, as well as Eggleston’s employer, the Alhambra
Police Department.
The first action taken against Eggleston, in what was
to be a two-year ordeal, was instituted by DMV. DMV notified Eggleston
of their intent to revoke his driver’s license as a result of alleged
negligence in the traffic collision. A hearing was held with DMV in
which the Revocation Order was overturned. Evidence was presented to the
hearing officer, including photographs, accident statistics, and
testimony from the investigating CHP officer and Eggleston. Eggleston
testified that he did not see the pedestrian until it was too late to
avoid a collision, in part due to poor lighting conditions and his view
being obstructed by other vehicles. The CHP officer, as a result of the
evidence and testimony he observed at the hearing, testified his
conclusions in the report should be changed.
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office
declined to file any charges against Eggleston in the matter, citing
that the evidence was not clear that the fault of the collision did not
belong to the pedestrian. Eighteen months after the collision, Alhambra’s
chief of police, Leon Burrus, decided to impose a three-week suspension
against Eggleston as a result of the collision. A pre-disciplinary
hearing (Skelly) was held with the chief of police. Eggleston,
represented by Dieter Dammeier, of Lackie & Dammeier LLP, was able
to convince the chief to reduce the suspension to a nine day suspension,
setting the stage for a civil service hearing with the Alhambra Civil
Service Commission.
Due to the length of time it took for the chief of
police to impose discipline, the Civil Service Hearing did not commence
until exactly two years from the date of the collision (the one year
statute of limitation in POBR was not effective on the date of this
collision). Eggleston, again represented by Dammeier, vigorously
defended his actions in the traffic collision before the Civil Service
Commission. The department, in an effort to prove Eggleston’s
negligence, introduced the CHP report which initially found Eggleston at
fault in the collision. The CHP officer’s conclusions in that report
was based on two independent witness statements provided at the scene.
Dammeier in contesting the findings of that report, introduced
contradictory testimony from the two witnesses which was given in the
civil lawsuit filed by the collision victim’s family. By introducing
this contradictory evidence, it was established that the pedestrian was
not inside of the cross-walk and was running across the street in the
path of oncoming traffic. The CHP officer who, after learning of the
witnesses new versions (given under oath), testified that if he had been
aware of those versions the night of the collision, he would not have
found Eggleston at fault and would have placed the fault on the
pedestrian.
Eggleston testified that he had no view of the
pedestrian until the second of the impact. The pedestrian ran into his
path and there was nothing that could be done to avoid the collision on
his part. The city, in a final effort to establish negligence, attempted
to establish that Eggleston was speeding, however, the captain who
initially recommended discipline, under cross-examination, ultimately
admitted that Eggleston was traveling at a "reasonable speed".
Finally, Dammeier argued that while the result of the
incident was tragic, which was the apparent reason the department felt
it necessary to impose severe discipline, the collision was not
Eggleston’s fault. The Alhambra Civil Service Commission agreed and
overturned the nine-day suspension.
