On Aug. 26, 2014, plaintiff Michael Richman, 48, a thoracic surgeon, was contacted by Los Angeles police officers while at his house in Brentwood. The officers went to the home after Richman’s ex- girlfriend made a 911 call to falsely report that Richman was thinking of suicide. Richman claimed his left wrist was injured when he was confronted by the officers and handcuffed. Richman sued Sergeant Cook; Officer Duarte; Officer Hugo Velazco; and the officers’ employer, the city of Los Angeles. Richman alleged that the officers’ actions constituted excessive force and false imprisonment in violation of his civil rights. Richman claimed that he was injured when the officers brought him to the ground and handcuffed him. Defense counsel disputed Richman’s claims, contending that the officers patiently waited nearly two hours before Richman complied with their demands to come out of his house. Counsel also maintained that Richman was never taken to the ground and that Richman’s only complaint to the officers was that his handcuffs were too tight, which caused the officers to replace the metal cuffs with a plastic version., Richman sustained a full tear of the scapholunate ligament in his left wrist. He underwent surgery in September 2015 and a second surgery at a later date. He also underwent a course of physical therapy. Richman claimed he hurt his wrist when he attempted to break his fall after being brought to the ground by the police. He claimed that he could no longer perform any surgeries and that he was deemed permanently disabled as a surgeon by his treating physician. Richman also claimed that suffered emotional distress as a result of the incident. Richman sought recovery of over $5 million in total damages, including economic damages for his lost wages and noneconomic damages for his physical and emotional pain and suffering.