On Nov. 12, 2015, plaintiff Stanislav Petrov, 29, was driving an allegedly stolen car in an unincorporated area of San Leandro, when he collided with two marked sheriff’s patrol cars. The collision caused minor to one deputy. Petrov fled the scene and was subsequently pursued by officers. The vehicle pursuit ended at the intersection of Stevenson and 14th Streets, in San Francisco, when Petrov ran out of gas and crashed. Petrov then fled on foot into alley, but Alameda County Sheriff’s Deputies Luis Santamaria and Paul Wieber caught up to him. Santamaria and Wieber then struck Petrov several times with their batons. Petrov sustained to his head and multiple crushing fractures to both hands. Petrov alleged that after he was beaten, Deputy Shawn Osborne stole his gold chain and money. The sheriff’s office recommended that Petrov be charged with 12 separate crimes for allegedly stealing the car and colliding with patrol cars, but the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office declined to charge him with any crime. Instead, the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office charged Santamaria and Wieber with assault under color of authority, battery with serious bodily injury, and assault with a deadly weapon in May 2016. Petrov’s beating came to light after the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office obtained video footage from a surveillance camera and a second video from a body-worn camera that one of the deputies appeared to have activated accidentally. After Petrov filed his Government Code tort claim, he was arrested and is still in custody, facing gun and drug charges in a federal case that followed a March 8, 2016 search of his apartment by the San Francisco police and Federal Bureau of Investigation. Petrov sued Santamaria; Wieber; Osborne; several other deputies who were on the scene, including John Malizia, Joshua Miller, Darrin Shelton, Robert Griffith and David Taylor; the deputies’ supervisor, Sheriff Gregory Ahern; and the officers’ employer, Alameda County. Petrov claimed that after entering the alley, he surrendered to the deputies by raising his hands, but that, nonetheless, Wieber tackled him to the cement. He claimed that Wieber and Santamaria then repeatedly beat him with metal police batons by striking him in the head and on his hands that were protecting his head. The District Attorney alleged that Santamaria and Wieber struck Petrov in the head and hands at least 30 times over the course of 40 seconds. Thus, plaintiff’s counsel contended that excessive force was used, as Petrov was not armed, never resisted after he had surrendered, and never posed an immediate threat to anyone. Counsel further contended the other deputies on the scene — Malizia, Miller, Shelton, Griffith and Taylor — failed to stop the unlawful beating and, later, filed false reports about the incident. Petrov claimed that after the beating, when he was bloodied and suffering from , the deputies at the scene stood around, exchanged “high fives,” and took trophy photos of him. He also claimed that after the incident, Osborne stole his gold chain and money, and then gave the chain to witnesses in order to keep their silence. In addition, Petrov claimed that the deputies filed false police reports and were permitted to change their reports after the video of the beating went viral. Thus, he brought municipal liability claims for the alleged cover-up of the deputies’ abuse. Defense counsel contended that Petrov used a stolen car to collide into two marked sheriff’s patrol cars, causing to one deputy. Counsel also contended that after the collision, Petrov fled the scene until he ran out of gas and crashed, and then attempted to flee on foot. Thus, defense counsel asserted that Petrov was a threat and that the deputies’ actions were justified., Petrov suffered blunt force trauma to his head, resulting in deep cuts to his head, a concussion, and a mild traumatic brain injury. He also sustained comminuted hand fractures to both hands, including to the first, third, fourth, and fifth metacarpals and proximal phalanxes of the left hand, and to the fourth metacarpal, proximal phalanx and middle phalanx of the right hand. Petrov was subsequently taken by ambulance to a hospital, where he required 12 days of inpatient hospitalization. He also underwent surgeries to both hands, including the placement of titanium plates and pins, the placement of wires, and the subsequent removal of the wires. Petrov claimed that his hands will be disabled for the rest of his life, as he still cannot bend some of his fingers. He alleged that as a result, he’ll never be able to work with his hands. Although unemployed at the time of the incident, Petrov claimed that he previously did odd jobs working on cars and that he enjoyed mechanical work on cars. Thus, he claimed that he could have worked on cars professionally, if his hands were not crushed. Petrov sought recovery of damages according to proof, punitive damages against the deputies, and attorney fees and costs.