ALAMEDA COUNTY, Calif. (KRON) — A Black woman and her two daughters who were handcuffed by sheriff’s deputies outside of a Castro Valley Starbucks in 2019 have been awarded $8.25 million by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, according to court documents.
The family filed suit against Alameda County Sheriff’s deputies Steven Holland and Monica Pope as well as the County of Alameda. The Mar. 1 verdict was unanimous in favor of Aasylei Loggervale and her two daughters.
The Loggervales planned to head into the Castro Valley Starbucks in September of 2019. According to court documents, Loggervale parked her silver Cadillac in a handicapped space and displayed her handicap placard from the rearview mirror.
Body cam footage of Castro Valley Sheriff’s deputies Steven Holland and Monica Pope shows that the pair observed the Cadillac for several minutes before running the plates and determining that it was a rental, a court filing states. The deputies then approached the vehicle and informed Loggervale that they were investigating early-morning break-ins in the area.
When the deputies asked Loggervale for her ID, she questioned why she needed to give it to them. At this point, an argument took place between Holland and Loggervale. She instructed one of her daughters to start filming and asked the other to call a relative.
As both of Loggervale’s daughters joined in on the argument, one called 911 while the other started to record video. One of her daughters opened her door to head to the restroom, and the door hit Pope in the leg. At this point, Holland stated that everyone in the car was being detained, according to court documents.
Holland instructed Loggervale to exit the car, and she started the engine, but did not move the car. At this point, Holland grabbed Loggervale’s left arm and struggled with her for a moment before handcuffing her and placing her in a patrol vehicle.
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Within moments, both of Loggervale’s daughters were in handcuffs too. The deputies proceeded with a full search of the vehicle without permission. Lieutenant Anthony DeSousa arrived at the scene, and court documents state he did not instruct a half of the search or to release the Loggervales.
The Loggervales were held for about an hour before being allowed to leave. When the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office conducted an internal investigation of the incident, it determined there was no wrongdoing.
KRON4 reached out to the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office for comment on the matter, and Sheriff Yesenia Sanchez shared the following statement:
“The community’s trust in my agency is foundational to my mission of maintaining a positive relationship with those we serve. The facts of this case are extremely important to me and our community members, however, I must reserve my comments until the case has been fully adjudicated through the court system.” — Sheriff Sanchez
