An aging Korean woman, who sustained severe bruises from police brutality during midnight as she attempted to enter a parking structure of a church has earned $300,000 in compensation.
The city of Los Angeles agreed on March 8 to issue the compensation to Ok-jin Jun, 62, after admitting that two policemen abused their power to cause injury.
Judge Steven Wilson of the Central District Court of California ruled in December that the officers, Juan Carranza and Judith Romo, unlawfully arrested Yun. They also used excessive force while committing unreasonable detention and search.
Jun honked her horn at the two officers as she was driving to a church in Koreatown without realizing that it was a police vehicle on April 14, 2015 at around 5:30 a.m., according to the court documents.
The officers apparently followed Jun for a few blocks. When Yun arrived at the church and exited her vehicle, they issued two citations for her—excessive honking and driving over a double yellow line.
When questioned by the officers, Yun reached out to her smartphone and attempted to call 911 to request a Korean interpreter. By then, the officers slammed her to the ground, handcuffed her and caused injuries to her face, back and shoulders.
Jun’s lawyer explained that the footage of the scuffle via surveillance camera was clearly a violation of the officer’s law enforcement.
“Ultimately, I think the city knew that their officers were in the wrong,” said Antonio Kizzie, Jun’s attorney.
By Hyoung Jae Kim
