A lawsuit filed by the man once called the LAPD's "prime suspect" in connection with the March 2011 attack that severely injured a San Francisco Giants fan at Dodger Stadium was dismissed Monday.
Bryan Stow Case: Timeline of Events
Giovanni Ramirez, exonerated months after his May 22, 2011 arrest for the opening day attack on Bryan Stow in a Dodger Stadium parking lot, alleged in his lawsuit against the LAPD chief and city that that he was publicly defamed after the arrest.
The lawsuit claimed his due process rights were violated when LAPD Chief Charlie Beck said he was certain Ramirez was a suspect.But a federal judge ruled Monday ruled that due process was not violated because Ramirez was never criminally charged.
Beck later said the arrest of Ramirez was "regrettable."
The court also ruled that Ramirez's Fourth Amendment rights were not violated during a search of his residence because he was on parole and subject to such searches.
"This ruling affirms our position that the police acted appropriately in the course of this investigation," said City Attorney Carmen Trutanich.
Ramirez attorney Okorie Okorocha said he has already filed an appeal in the case.
"(My client) wasn't expecting something great out of this," Okorocha said. "His faith in the system was gone a long time ago."
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Ramirez was held for 10 months on a parole violation involving access to a firearm. A firearm was found at the home in which Ramirez was arrested, according to police.
His attorneys not only argued that Ramirez was not at the March 2011 home opener, but that he had never been to a game at Dodger Stadium.
He was exonerated in the Stow case after the arrests of Marvin Norwood and Louie Sanchez in July 2011. A preliminary hearing was tentatively scheduled for February.
Stow, who suffered brain damage in the attack, is at a Bay area rehabilitation center.
The Ramirez lawsuit sought an unspecified amount for defamation.
