CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Fourth Circuit of Appeals has partially remanded a previous ruling tied to the death of a Charlotte man in 2017 at the hands of two Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department officers, meaning the civil case is set for trial.
In a ruling shared with WCNC Charlotte on Wednesday, two of three judges agreed to partially vacate a previous district court ruling that said the family of Reuben Galindo couldn't pursue a civil case in his stead. Galindo was shot and killed by two CMPD officers - identified as Courtney Suggs and David Guerra - after he reportedly called 911 and informed dispatchers in Spanish he was armed.
Body camera footage was eventually ordered to be released. The footage showed Galindo telling officers he had been drinking, something later confirmed by a toxicology report. Guerra was heard and seen giving Galindo orders to put down his gun in English despite dispatchers requesting a Spanish-speaking officer or interpreter.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: The Defenders investigate lack of bilingual officers in Charlotte
Guerra was later cleared of charges by the Mecklenburg County District Attorney's Office. In 2019, Galindo's family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the city of Charlotte and both Guerra and Suggs. The suit claimed the officers were negligent in approaching Galindo without waiting for a translator.
Initially, U.S. District Court Judge Robert J. Conrad sided with the city. Galindo's family, however, appealed the case to the Fourth Circuit. The case was one of two heard in early December 2022.
Circuit Judge Robert B. King, joined by Senior Judge Barbara Keenan, still upheld that the city of Charlotte wasn't negligent with the officers' training. However, the judges vacated Conrad's other findings that favored the city, chiefly that Guerra was granted qualified immunity in response to a claim that Galindo's rights under the Fourth Amendment were violated.
King and Keenan also reversed summary judgment awards favoring Guerra on claims of assault and battery, wrongful death caused by negligence, and negligent infliction of emotional distress.
"The family of Ruben Galindo is grateful that the Fourth Circuit has reversed the summary judgment ruling for the defendants and has sent the case back for trial," said S. Luke Largess, counsel for Galindo's family from Tin Fulton Walker & Owen, PLLC. "We hope there now will be a way to resolve the matter."
A spokesperson for the city of Charlotte responded to a request for comment from WCNC Charlotte by saying the city would not comment on active litigation.
Judge Julius Richardson, who was the third judge empaneled for the case, dissented from the other two. Richardson said the majority opinion does not uphold the concept of qualified immunity as it currently stands, and that the court joins others in "improperly" denying it in a Fourth Amendment case.