Civil Rights Attorney Alleges Two Pasadena Police Officers Lied About Violent Arrest, Should Be Fired

A local civil rights attorney filed a complaint Thursday alleging two Pasadena police officers lied about what actually happened during the violent 2017 arrest of a young Altadena African-American man whose face was injured and leg broken in the incident.

Attorney Dale Gronemeier said that the complaint he filed on behalf of Pasadenans Organizing for Progress and the Coalition for Increased Civilian Oversight of Pasadena Police demands the two officers, Officers Lerry Esparza and Zachary Lujan, be fired from the police force.

Pasadena’s Acting Public Information Officer Lisa Derderian responded to Gronemeier’s complaint by telling local media that the entire incident is under review.

“Accusations are just that and the investigation will determine the actual facts,” Derderian said.

“We can ensure the public there will be a thorough investigation,” she added.

A key component of Gronemeier’s complaint is a video produced by Pasadenans Organizing for Progress which he said shows graphic video evidence that Officers Esparza and Lujan made false statements in describing what occurred during the arrest incident.

The video, Gronemeier said, takes “factual statements made by Officers Esparza and Lujan … and contrasts those factual statements with bodycam, carcam, and/or bystander video of the incident graphically showing that their statements are false.”

Gronemeier said that he requested that Interim Chief of Police John Perez include the video as “evidence that becomes part of the internal review.”

The November 9, 2017 event unfolded in Altadena when the two Pasadena police officers followed 21-year-old Christopher Ballew into a gas station on the corner of Fair Oaks Avenue and Woodbury Road.

In the incident that followed, the officers’ contact with Ballew quickly became confrontational and soon became a physical struggle. Ballew was arrested but was injured by the officers, who also suffered minor injuries.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office declined to file any charges against Ballew as a result of the incident.

Ballew retained noted Pasadena attorney John Burton, who filed a lawsuit against the City of Pasadena and certain officials as well as numerous police officers as defendants, charging battery, false arrest, and imprisonment.