LOS ANGELES — The city of Los Angeles will pay $9.5 million to settle a lawsuit from relatives of a woman fatally shot by police in LA during a shootout with a gunman at a Trader Joe’s store six years ago, the family’s attorneys said Friday.
Father and brother of the 27-year-old Melody Corado sued in November 2018, alleging civil rights violations and wrongful death.
Corado was the assistant manager at the Silver Lake neighborhood store on July 21, 2018, when a gunman, who was being chased by police, ended up in a shootout when he ran inside. Police said Corado was caught in the crossfire.
Investigators said the gunman had shot his grandmother and kidnapped his girlfriend. He took dozens of people hostage in the store but later surrendered.
Neil Gehlawat, a lawyer for Corado’s family, said her death could have been prevented if the officers had followed their training.
“Officers must look at the dangers to bystanders when they use deadly force, and the officers here failed to do that,” Gehlawat said in a statement.
The city attorney did not immediately respond Friday to an email seeking comment on the settlement.
The Los Angeles Police Commission identified the officer who fired the fatal shot did not violate police policy. A report said officers acted reasonably because they believed the gunman posed an immediate threat of harm or death.