On Sept. 27, 2016, plaintiffs’ decedent Alfred Olango, 38, a mentally unstable man, was acting up. As a result, his sister contacted the police to request help with Olango. When an El Cajon police officer, Richard Gonsalves, responded to the scene, Olango had his right hand in his pants pocket. When Olango pulled out his hand, Gonsalves observed Olango holding a barrel-shaped item. Gonsalves then shot Olango four times. Olango’s sister witnessed the shooting, and Olango died at a hospital shortly thereafter. It was eventually discovered that the item Olango pulled out of his pocket was a vape smoking device with a barrel-shaped mouthpiece. The decedent’s sister, Lucy Olango, sued Gonsalves and Gonsalves’ employer, the city of El Cajon (Docket No. 37-2017-00005331-CU-PO-CTL). The decedent’s sister alleged that Gonsalves’ actions constituted excessive force and a negligent infliction of emotional distress. She also alleged that the city was liable for Gonsalves’ actions. The decedent’s wife, Taina Rozier, and daughters, Chare Rozier-Olango and Hasana Collins, acting individually and as the decedent’s successors in interest, brought a separate suit against Gonsalves and the city (Docket No. 37-2018-00036420-CU-PO-CTL). The matters were ultimately consolidated. Although Hasana Collins was initially named as a plaintiff, believing she was the decedent’s daughter, a DNA test confirmed that she was not. Since she was not biologically related to the decedent, she was dismissed from the case. In addition, although some of the plaintiffs originally alleged that Gonsalves violated the decedent’s civil rights, by the time of trial they claimed only that Gonsalves negligently shot Olango. The decedent’s sister, Lucy Olango, claimed that she contacted the police to request help with her brother, who was mentally unstable, and told a 911 dispatcher that her brother was unarmed. She also claimed that, at the scene, she told Gonsalves that her brother did not have a gun. However, the decedent’s family alleged that Gonsalves failed to use de-escalation techniques and actually escalated the situation. As a result, they alleged that Gonsalves was negligent in his use of pre-shooting tactics and negligent for shooting the unarmed decedent, causing his wrongful death. Gonsalves claimed that he issued repeated requests for the decedent to take his hand out of his pocket but the decedent refused. He also claimed that when the decedent eventually pulled his right hand from his pants pocket, he was holding a barrel-shaped item that, in the moment, appeared to be a gun. In addition, Gonsalves claimed that the decedent took a typical shooter’s stance and pointed the object at his head. Gonsalves alleged tha,t as a result, he feared for his life and shot the decedent. Defense counsel argued that the options Gonsalves chose to use for the situation were reasonable., Alfred Olango sustained four gunshot wounds. He was taken to a hospital, but he died shortly thereafter. He was 38 years old. The decedent was survived by his sister, Lucy Olango; his wife, Taina Rozier; and his daughter, Chare Rozier-Olango. The decedent’s family sought recovery of wrongful death damages for the loss of Alfred Olango. Lucy Olango claimed that she witnessed the fatal shooting, causing her to suffer from emotional distress. As a result, she also sought recovery of damages for the negligent infliction of emotional distress.