A Woodland Hills man, Daniel McGuire, has been ordered by a jury to pay a complete of greater than $2.8 million in damages to 2 victims who have been subjected to violent assaults. The jury discovered McGuire responsible of assault, inflicting emotional misery, and committing violent acts in opposition to avenue distributors Jonathan Alvarez and Tomas Leocadio. Each victims relied on their fruit stands as their sole supply of revenue.
In accordance with courtroom paperwork filed by lawyer Christian Contreras, McGuire’s reign of terror occurred between February and August 2022. Throughout this era, he repeatedly harassed distributors working on the intersection of Canoga Avenue and Dumetz Street in Woodland Hills. In March of that yr, McGuire distributed a racist manifesto within the neighborhood, referring to fruit distributors as “sub-American unlawful aliens,” “hardened criminals,” and “cockroaches that should be floor into the dust.”
The grievance additional states that McGuire terrorized Leocadio in March, utilizing racist and vulgar language, which led the seller to take away his stand from the intersection. In August, McGuire was caught on digicam destroying Alvarez’s fruit stand with an ax. Moreover, video footage from a small rally held in Could 2022 confirmed McGuire yelling at demonstrators and spraying them with a backyard hose.
In response to the jury’s ruling, the plaintiffs’ attorneys issued an announcement commending the decision for sending a message that Los Angeles won’t tolerate hate and violence in opposition to avenue distributors. They described the end result as a landmark avenue vendor verdict, reflecting the group’s assist for avenue distributors and the rejection of racism, bigotry, and hate.
The civil jury trial, which happened in Van Nuys Courthouse East, discovered McGuire responsible of assault, intentional infliction of emotional misery, and negligence. He was additionally present in violation of the Ralph and Bane acts, two California civil rights legal guidelines that shield people from hate, violence, and intimidation.
As per the jury’s determination, Alvarez is entitled to roughly $1.57 million in damages, whereas Leocadio is awarded round $1.27 million.
