Plaintiffs' Notice Of Motion And Motion To Compel Depositions Of ...

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1234567891011121314151617181920212223242526MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIESI.INTRODUCTIONIn this wrongful death action, two Oxnard Police Officers drove a 6,500 pound SUV policevehicle over plaintiffs’ mother, Cindy Conolly, as she lay on the beach in Oxnard sunbathing. TheOfficers ran over her first with the left front tire, then with the left rear tire. The weight of the 6,500pound SUV smashed thirteen (13) of her ribs and fractured her skull, causing her death. The Officersallegedly did not know they had just run over and killed Ms. Conolly, and turned and drove away downthe beach. They received a 911 call approximately 17 minutes later which summoned them back to thelocation, at which time they, in an interview, claim to have first realized what they had done.The instant wrongful death action was initiated against defendant City of Oxnard, which is liableunder the doctrine of respondeat superior for the conduct of the two Oxnard Police Officers.The deponents that are the subject of this Motion to Compel are defendant’s employees, OxnardPolice Officer Frank Brisslinger (“Officer Brisslinger”) and Officer Martin Polo (“Officer Polo”), theindividuals directly responsible for causing the death of plaintiffs’ mother, Cindy Conolly. DefendantCity of Oxnard refuses to produce these two Officers for deposition in this action, forcing plaintiffs tobring the instant Motion to Compel.II.STATEMENT OF FACTSA. Cindy Conolly’s Tragic And Inexplicable DeathIn early June of 2006, decedent Cindy Conolly had traveled from her home in Iowa to attend thewedding of her only son, plaintiff Ronnie Bassett. She stayed at the Embassy Suites Mandalay BeachResort (“the Hotel”), located oceanfront in Oxnard, California. Her daughter, Tammy Krieger, had alsotraveled from her home in Minnesota to California to attend the wedding. The wedding took place onJune 11, 2006. See Plaintiffs’ Complaint, 8. 127281 Plaintiffs request this Court take judicial notice of Plaintiffs’ Complaint, on file in this action.______________________________________________________________________________1Plaintiffs’ Notice Of Motion And Motion To Compel Depositions Of Defendant City Of Oxnard EmployeesOfficer Frank Brisslinger And Officer Martin Polo; Memorandum Of Points And Authorities;Request For $4,618.80 in Sanctions
12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728The day after her son’s wedding, June 12, 2006, Cindy Conolly had breakfast at a beach sidecafé, Mrs. Olsen’s, with her daughter Tammy and her husband. She then bid them farewell, as theywere traveling up the coast to Northern California. Ms. Conolly then decided to go and sunbathe on thepublic beach in front of the Hotel. At approximately 1:00 p.m., she was lying on the beach, wearing abright blue one-piece swimsuit. She was lying perpendicular to the water line, with her feet extendedtoward the ocean. See Plaintiffs’ Complaint, 9.Also at approximately 1:00 p.m. on June 12, 2006, Officers Brisslinger and Polo were on duty,on patrol in a 6,500 pound Chevrolet Tahoe Sport Utility Vehicle (“Tahoe”). They had chosen thisvehicle for their patrol that day “because of the comfort of it and the two reclining seats.” See PoloInterview, Exhibit 16 to the Hiepler Decl., 13, p. 102. The Tahoe was driven by Senior Officer FrankBrisslinger. Senior Officer Martin Polo was a front-seat passenger.After patrolling variousneighborhoods, Officer Brisslinger suggested that they drive out to the beach, “because it was a nice andsunny day.” Id. at p. 103.They gained access to the beach from the south parking lot of the Embassy Suites Hotel, wherethere is a sidewalk and concrete path that leads onto the sand and beach. Id. They had to drive up andover a curb to get to the concrete path. Id. Officer Brisslinger “hit the curb hard and may have scaredsome people on the beach walkway.” Id. Indeed, one witness, Jinky Quemuel, was walking on the pathat the time the Officers were approaching. See Quemuel Interview, Exhibit 18 to the Hiepler Decl., 15at p. 124. She stated that she was “startled” because they came up so fast. Id. The witness thought theywere going to an emergency, but then she looked in the vehicle and saw them “laughing and having agood time.” Id. Officer Polo was reclined back in his seat, without a seatbelt on. Polo Interview,Exhibit 16 to the Hiepler Decl., 13, p. 106-07. The car stereo was playing music, and Officer Polohad his foot up on the dashboard. Id. at p. 107. This occurred within one minute of the Officers runningover Ms. Conolly. . .The Officers proceeded onto the beach, driving the 6,500 pound Tahoe right over Cindy Conolly,as she lay on the beach. First the left front wheel drove directly over her head, back and buttocks,followed by the left rear tire also driving directly over her head, back and buttocks. See WitnessMichael Arthur’s Interview, Exhibit 17 to the Hiepler Decl., 14, p. 112.______________________________________________________________________________2Plaintiffs’ Notice Of Motion And Motion To Compel Depositions Of Defendant City Of Oxnard EmployeesOfficer Frank Brisslinger And Officer Martin Polo; Memorandum Of Points And Authorities;Request For $4,618.80 in Sanctions
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