Jury: No damages in negligence case in gang killing of Sun Valley witness

The parents of a Sun Valley teen who was killed after testifying as a witness to a gang killing will not receive the millions in damages sought from the city and two LAPD detectives in a lawsuit, a jury ruled Thursday.

The two-week trial in federal court also resulted in a verdict of no punitive damages against the two defendant police officers. The parents of Martha Puebla, 16, had sought several million dollars in damages and had demanded $950,000 in punitive damages.

The case stems from a November 2002 Vineland Boyz gang killing in which Puebla was a witness. She testified in court and despite numerous threats against her, Puebla did not enter the witness relocation program. Her parents said she was never offered protection.

The detectives, Martin Pinner and Juan Rodriguez, had told then-alleged killer Jose "Pepe" Ledesma during an interrogation that Puebla had identified him as the shooter. Ledesma, while in jail, made a call asking someone to make her disappear.

Puebla was murdered by members of the gang 12 days after she testified, according to the City Attorney's Office.

Puebla's parents filed a lawsuit alleging civil rights violations and negligence on behalf of the Los Angeles Police Department.

Read the L.A. Times' story of the events leading up to Puebla's killing here.