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Inmate Gets $405K In Deputy's Pepper Spray Attack

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jurors decided an inmate assaulted with pepper spray by Los Angeles deputies for cursing at a jailer should get $405,000.

Alejandro Franco was a 23-year-old inmate in 2007 when three deputies pulled down his boxer shorts and pepper-sprayed his anus and groin. The deputies, who are no longer with the department, were upset with Franco because he cursed at a downtown jailer after being declined fresh laundry.

The Los Angeles Times says the federal jury's decision Thursday comes about a week after prosecutors declined to file criminal charges against the deputies. Prosecutors say there was insufficient evidence and Franco was characterized as an unreliable witness.

(© Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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