SAN FRANCISCO — A father is suing several government entities alleging the wrongful death of his son.
Norman Cornejo, as successor in interest to the estate of John Anthony Cornejo, filed a complaint on Feb. 28, in the U.S. District Court Northern District of California against the county of Alameda, California Highway Patrol, Kevin Beyrodt, Does 1 to 50, citing unreasonable search and seizure, excessive force, denial of medical care, false arrest and imprisonment, battery and other counts.
According to the complaint, the plaintiff alleges that, on March 29, 2015, John Anthony Cornejo was pulled over for a vehicle violation near San Pablo and Brush Street by the California Highway Patrol. The suit states John Anthony Cornejo told the patrol officer he had gum and swallowed it. He was later transported to the Alameda County Sheriff's Department, but the suit states the officer failed to inform anyone that there was a possibility that the plaintiff's decedent had ingested drugs.
The plaintiff holds the defendants responsible because they allegedly placed plaintiff's decedent in a holding cell but failed to keep watch, which resulted in John Anthony Cornejo suffering from symptoms consistent with ingesting narcotics and possible seizure. The suit states he died on March 30, 2015.
The plaintiff seeks a trial by jury. He is represented by Nikolaus W. Reed of Law Offices of Nikolaus W. Reed in San Francisco in California and Logan Quirk of Quirk Law Group in Los Angeles in California.
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California Case number 3:16-cv-00974