Charlie Beck Urges City To Appeal $5.7M Award To Paralyzed Felon

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck is urging that the city appeal a jury's decision to award $5.7 million to a convicted felon who was shot by police and paralyzed.

The Los Angeles Times reports that Beck's reaction on Saturday comes after the jury agreed that 26-year-old Robert Contreras should be compensated for the injuries he suffered.

Police shot him in 2005 when he fled the scene of a drive-by shooting. He allegedly turned toward officers with what they believed was a gun, but it turned out to be a cellphone.

Beck says the outcome of the case might be different if the jury heard certain evidence, including a witness testimony that Contreras left the suspect vehicle in the drive-by shooting armed with a gun.

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