EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — Daniel Villegas, the man who was falsely imprisoned in a 1993 double murder, has now been given the go-ahead to sue the City of El Paso, according to court documents obtained by KTSM.
Federal District Court Judge David C. Guaderrama made the ruling on Friday, Aug. 22 in El Paso.
The lawsuit was originally filed in 2015 and cites three key actions by El Paso Police that “impaired” Villegas’ rights.
The judge dismissed the first of the three but is allowing the lawsuit to go to trial on the grounds the the Police Department’s leaders were “encouraging officers to clear cases at all costs and tolerating dishonesty while deliberately failing to supervise officers.”
Villegas, now 48, was convicted of capital murder in 1995 and sentenced to life in prison for the 1993 drive-by shooting deaths of Armando Lazo and Robert England.
The conviction was overturned in 2013 and Villegas was acquitted in 2018.
Felix Valenzuela, one of Villegas’ attorneys, sent KTSM the following statement:
“We are very happy to get Daniel justice from the almost 20 years of his life that was taken away from him 31 years ago. Daniel always said the outrageous conduct by the police detectives was something he thought only happened in the movies or nightmares. He lived it: He was physically and emotionally abused and still lives with those scars today. We look forward to bringing to the jury Daniel’s case and only ask for justice for Daniel.”
The City of El Paso also issued a statement about the case: “The City of El Paso respects the court’s ruling in the lawsuit filed by Mr. Daniel Villegas. While some claims were dismissed, others remain and will proceed as directed by the court. Because this matter is still active litigation, the City cannot comment further at this time.”
Guaderrama in his ruling also dismissed several claims in Villegas’ lawsuit — that El Paso Police didn’t properly train its officers and detectives and that the department failed to investigate and discipline officers accused of wrongdoing.
The judge ruled that the Villegas and his lawyers did not provide enough evidence on those issues.
Here is a full copy of the judge’s ruling allowing the lawsuit to proceed.
Read: Read More