SAN FRANCISCO — A federal judge ruled that it should be up to a jury to determine the legality of a Brentwood officer’s failure to call off his dog after a woman suspected of retail theft surrendered to police, paving the way for a civil trial or a higher settlement, court records show.
Lin’s order was in response to a motion by attorneys for Brentwood police, which sought a judgement in their favor. They argued in a motion that Rezentes was trying to lawfully detain Bates, who was suspected of working with two others to steal $10,000 in beauty products from a Brentwood shopping center, and hid in a bush to escape police.
Adante Pointer, a civil rights attorney, released a written statement calling it a “grotesque case of police abuse.” But Lin’s order notes that the crux of Bates’ lawsuit starts when her crime of obstruction ended — specifically, when she agreed to come out of the bush, yet continued to be attacked by the dog. According to Lin’s order, Rezentes yelled out a single release command, while other officers were yelling things, which the dog apparently ignored. When Bates surrendered a few seconds later, Rezentes waited 40 seconds to yell the release command again, Lin wrote.
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