When police shoot and kill someone you love: a California wrongful death guide

If a police officer or sheriff's deputy shot and killed your son, daughter, husband, wife, parent or sibling, we are very sorry. A police shooting wrongful death lawsuit in California asks a simple question that is hard to answer: was the shooting necessary under the law, and if not, who is responsible? Families often learn very little in the first days.

This guide explains the rules officers must follow before using deadly force, what the California Department of Justice does after some shootings, how to get body-camera video and records, who can bring a civil claim, and the deadlines that apply. It is general information, not legal advice. The most important thing to know now: a claim against a city or county has a six-month deadline, and that clock runs even while the criminal review is still open.

What California law says about police use of deadly force

California changed its deadly-force law in 2019 with Assembly Bill 392. Under Penal Code § 835a, the Legislature's stated intent is that officers "use deadly force only when necessary in defense of human life." The statute says officers must evaluate each situation and "use other available resources and techniques if reasonably safe and feasible to an objectively reasonable officer."

The law allows an officer to use deadly force only in two situations:

• To defend against an imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury to the officer or another person.
• To catch a person fleeing from a felony that threatened or caused death or serious bodily injury, if the officer reasonably believes the person will cause death or serious injury to someone else unless caught right away.

Two definitions matter in almost every case. A threat is "imminent" only when a reasonable officer would believe the person has the "present ability, opportunity, and apparent intent" to immediately cause death or serious injury. The statute adds that imminent harm "is not merely a fear of future harm." And the "totality of the circumstances" includes "the conduct of the officer and the subject leading up to the use of deadly force." That last phrase means the moments before the shots are fired, including whether officers rushed in or created the danger themselves, can be part of the analysis. Where feasible, officers must also identify themselves and warn that deadly force may be used.

The federal standard is related but not identical. Under the Fourth Amendment, courts ask whether the force was objectively reasonable based on the totality of the circumstances the officer faced.

What the state data shows

Every California law enforcement agency must report incidents where an officer fires a gun at a person or uses force that causes death or serious injury. According to the California Department of Justice's Use of Force Incident Reporting for 2024 (the URSUS data):

Reported incidents	581 statewide in 2024 (DOJ, published 2025)
Incidents with a firearm discharge	224 of the 581
Civilians involved	592
Civilians who died	117 (19.8%)
Perceived as armed by officers	324 civilians; 280 were confirmed to be armed
Officers	1,215 involved; 243 injured; none died

Those totals cover all serious uses of force, not only shootings, and the DOJ notes that changes to its data collection in 2023 limit comparisons with earlier years.

Who investigates a fatal police shooting?

Since July 1, 2021, under Assembly Bill 1506, the California Department of Justice investigates officer-involved shootings that kill an unarmed civilian. Government Code § 12525.3 defines "unarmed civilian" to include anyone not in possession of a deadly weapon, and lets the state also investigate when "there is a reasonable dispute as to whether the civilian was armed." If the DOJ decides not to file criminal charges, it must publish a written report explaining the facts, its legal analysis and any recommended policy changes for the agency.

These reviews take time. In November 2022, CBS Sacramento and CalMatters reported that the Attorney General had accepted 25 cases in the law's first year and a half but had issued a report in only one. When the person was armed, or the state declines the case, the local district attorney usually reviews the shooting instead.

A decision not to prosecute does not decide a civil case. Criminal charges require proof beyond a reasonable doubt that the officer committed a crime. A civil wrongful death case asks a different question under a lower standard of proof, and it can also look at training, supervision and department policy.

How to get the body-camera video and records

California law treats recordings of police shootings as "critical incident" video. Under Government Code § 7923.625, an agency may delay releasing video of an officer firing at a person, or of force that caused death or great bodily injury, for no longer than 45 calendar days during an active investigation. After that, it may keep withholding only if release "would substantially interfere with the investigation," and it must update the requester every 30 days. After one year, the agency needs clear and convincing evidence to keep delaying.

Investigation records are public too. Under Penal Code § 832.7, records about an officer firing at a person, or using force that caused death or great bodily injury, are not confidential and must generally be produced within 45 days of a request, subject to temporary withholding during active investigations. Our guide to getting autopsy reports, records and video after a death walks through the requests step by step.

Who can be held responsible?

• The officer or deputy who fired. A federal civil-rights claim under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 can be brought for an unreasonable seizure under the Fourth Amendment. Officers often raise qualified immunity on federal claims; our guide to qualified immunity in California explains how it works and where it does not apply.
• The city or county. Under California law, a public entity is generally responsible for what its employees do within the scope of their work (Government Code § 815.2), though some immunities apply. Under federal law, a city or county can be liable when its own policy, custom or failure to train caused the death. Lawyers call these Monell claims.
• State-law claims. Wrongful death, battery and negligence claims apply state standards, including § 835a. California's Bane Act, Civil Code § 52.1, allows a civil action when someone interferes with constitutional rights by threats, intimidation or coercion, and lets the court award attorney's fees. Qualified immunity is a federal defense and does not apply to these state claims. See our Bane Act guide.

After a death, close family members can bring a wrongful death claim for their own loss: a spouse or registered domestic partner and children, and in some circumstances parents or others who depended on the person. The estate can bring a separate survival claim for the losses the person had before death. In federal civil-rights cases, federal courts in California have allowed the estate to recover for the person's own suffering in some cases.

What families have recovered in reported California cases

These are reported results in California police shooting cases brought by families. They were obtained by other law firms, not LaCour. More results are collected in our California police brutality settlements and verdicts page.

In several of these cases, prosecutors did not file charges. In the Guardado case, for example, the Los Angeles County District Attorney found "insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt" that the deputy did not act in lawful self-defense, according to ABC7, yet the county still settled the family's civil case. Every case is different. Past results, including those listed here, do not predict the outcome of any other case.

Deadlines for a police shooting wrongful death lawsuit

For state-law claims against a city, county or the State, a written government claim must be presented within six months of the death (Government Code § 911.2). If the claim is rejected, there is generally six months from the written rejection to file suit. Families lose state claims by waiting, and late-claim relief is narrow. Our guide to the six-month government claim deadline explains how to calculate it.

Federal § 1983 claims have no claim requirement and generally must be filed within two years in California. Do not wait for the criminal review to end: a DOJ or district attorney decision can take a year or more, and the six-month clock does not pause for it. If the person who died was facing criminal charges, or if a family member was arrested at the scene, talk to a lawyer before giving any statement, because what is said in one case can matter in the other.

What to do in the first weeks

1. Write down the date, time, place, the agency involved and the names of any officers, investigators or chaplains who spoke with you.
2. Do not give a recorded statement to the agency, its insurer or its investigators about the person who died until you have talked to a lawyer.
3. Do not sign anything from the city, county or an insurer.
4. Request the coroner or medical examiner report, and keep every letter, voicemail and business card.
5. Save phone videos, texts and social media posts from that day. Ask witnesses to keep their videos and write down what they saw.
6. Mark the six-month date on a calendar, counted from the day of the death.
7. Talk to a lawyer early. We send preservation letters for body-camera and dash-camera video, dispatch audio, radio logs and use-of-force reports, and request records under § 7923.625 and § 832.7.

How LaCour handles police shooting cases

LaCour Trial Lawyers is a trial firm based in Pasadena that handles police misconduct and wrongful death in custody cases across California. Jonathan P. LaCour, our founding partner and lead trial counsel, leads these cases himself, and Spanish-speaking lawyers and staff are available. We work on contingency, so there is no fee unless there is a recovery. Related guides cover shootings during a mental health crisis and deaths after restraint during an arrest. You can ask for a free, confidential review.

Frequently asked questions

This guide is general information about California and federal law and about public records as of its date. It is not legal advice, and reading it or contacting us does not create an attorney–client relationship. Allegations in lawsuits are claims, not findings. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Attorney advertising.