Mely was shot and killed by LAPD officers who were in pursuit of Gene Atkins as he ran into a Silver Lake Trader Joe’s in 2018.
LOS ANGELES – On August 30, 2024, John Taylor and Neil Gehlawat with Taylor & Ring, and Ron Rosengarten with Rosengarten and Associates, obtained a $9,500,000 settlement for the family of Melyda “Mely” Corado after six years of litigation. This is the largest pre-trial settlement paid by the City of Los Angeles involving a Los Angeles Police Department shooting.
Filed in November 2018, the lawsuit alleged the City of Los Angeles and Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers Sinlen Tse and Sarah Winans, were negligent, went against their training, and used excessive force when Tse fatally shot Mely. Mely was an innocent bystander fatally shot at the Silver Lake Trader Joe’s where she worked as an assistant manager on July 21, 2018. Prior to the shooting, Officers Tse and Winans were pursuing Gene Atkins, who had shot and wounded his grandmother. Officers Tse and Winans continued shooting in the direction of the Trader Joe’s when Atkins started to run toward the entrance.
“We are pleased that the City has acknowledged their wrongdoing and taken responsibility for causing Mely’s death,” said attorney Taylor. “After six years of fighting for justice for Mely, the Corado family’s persistence and demands for accountability were finally recognized.”
“Mely’s death was entirely preventable if the officers had followed their training and accounted for their background while firing,” explains attorney Gehlawat. “Officers must look at the dangers posed to bystanders when using deadly force, and the officers here failed to do that.”
“On behalf of the Corado family, I would like to once again thank family, friends, the Silver Lake community, Los Angeles, and people all over the nation for their continuous and overwhelming love and support on this six year road to justice. Justice for Mely, her family, and her friends has finally happened,” said family attorney, Ron Rosengarten.
Statement from the Corado family: “Nothing will bring Mely back to us and we are forever heartbroken by her violent death caused by those who are meant to protect and serve the community. We will keep her memory alive always. We hope this settlement sends a loud message to LAPD and all law enforcement agencies across the country that officers must account for their surroundings when firing their guns.”
Taylor & Ring, an award-winning Los Angeles-based trial law firm, represents plaintiffs across California in high-impact civil rights, personal injury, wrongful death, and sexual assault, abuse and harassment matters.
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