Los Angeles County calls for dismissal of Zendejas' lawsuit
PDF: County Response.pdf
Attorneys representing Los Angeles County and sheriff's department officials are calling on a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit filed by former NFL placekicker Tony Zendejas.
In their response last week to Zendejas' lawsuit, the attorneys say there is no basis for Zendejas' claims that sheriff's officials violated his constitutional rights when investigating a rape allegation against him.
Zendejas, 49, was acquitted by a jury in March of charges that he drugged a patron at his San Dimas restaurant and raped and sodomized her at a nearby motel. Zendejas denies drugging the woman and he testified at his trial that the sex was consensual.
In his federal complaint against the county in July, Zendejas alleges that officials at the sheriff department's San Dimas station sought to undermine him and his business, Zendejas Mexican Restaurant, for most of this decade.
Their efforts culminated in a biased rape investigation and Zendejas' arrest on rape charges in January 2008, Zendejas alleges.
"Investigating Officers conducted an ineffectual, reckless, grossly negligent, and biased investigation," said Zendejas' complaint.
Zendejas is demanding at least $2 million for damages in his lawsuit, which names as defendants the county, the sheriff's department, and Detective Don Nelson, the investigator from the department's San Dimas station who spearheaded the Zendejas investigation.
Attorneys for the county denied Zendejas' claims in their Friday filing, and offered several generic defenses to his allegations.
Zendejas's attorney, James Reiss, called the county's response "standard pleading" and said he wasn't surprised by anything in the document.
Reiss said he plans to attend a mediation meeting with attorneys for the county to discuss a potential settlement prior to a scheduled court appearance in early February.
If Zendejas and the county fail to reach a settlement, trial dates may be set at the February hearing in federal court, Reiss said.
Zendejas and attorneys for the county did not return calls seeking comment today.
Zendejas, a Chino native and current Yorba Linda resident, played in the NFL for 11 seasons in the '80s and '90s, including four seasons with the Los Angeles Rams. He has owned Zendejas Mexican Restaurant in San Dimas since 1987.
In his lawsuit, Zendejas claims that in official reports the sheriff's department portrayed his restaurant as a hotbed of criminal activity.
He also claims that deputies harassed and wrongfully issued parking tickets to his patrons in an effort to protect the financial health of a neighboring bar, Montana's, which hosted functions for the county and the sheriff's department.
Zendejas alleges that Nelson obtained an arrest warrant through false pretenses. Nelson included misleading and manipulated facts about Zendejas' case in a statement of probable cause that was reviewed by a judge, Zendejas alleges.
"Nelson targeted (Zendejas) because of his celebrity status, and Nelson knew that his arrest would lead to vast television, Internet and print media coverage and publicity that would bolster his career and lead to incalculable personal, social, and economic damage for (Zendejas)," said Zendejas' complaint.
Fox 11's coverage of Zendejas' acquittal:
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