On April 19, 2009, at roughly 11 p.m., plaintiff Danny Pina, 41, an auto detailer, was riding his bicycle back his house on 14th Street in San Jose when San Jose police officers Allan De La Cruz and Jean Jimenez stopped him for riding without a headlamp. A physical altercation ultimately broke out and Pina was arrested for obstruction of justice. The District Attorney’s Office did not file any criminal charges against Pina for the incident in which he sustained to his right elbow and nose. Pina sued De La Cruz and Jimenez. He alleged that the officers’ actions constituted excessive force in violation of his Fourth Amendment rights. Pina claimed that he did not ignore the officers’ verbal commands, but tried to explain that he was at home. He also claimed that as he was trying to put his bicycle up against the fence, De La Cruz punched him, knocked him down, and then dislocated his elbow while placing handcuffs on him. Pina further claimed that Jimenez was helping De La Cruz put the handcuffs put on him when he heard his elbow snap. In addition, Pina stated that he submitted to a blood alcohol test at the hospital that measured a .02 blood-alcohol content, which is considered to be a low level amount of alcohol. De La Cruz and Jimenez claimed that Pina ignored their verbal commands when they tried to detain him. They also claimed that when they eventually made contact with Pina, he physically resisted them when they tried to place handcuffs on him. De La Cruz and Jimenez further claimed that they suspected Pina was intoxicated at the time, and that their actions did not constitute as excessive force., Pina was taken to an emergency room for medical clearance before being booked at the police precinct. He sustained a dislocation to his right, dominant elbow, which was casted for six weeks. Pina also suffered a broken nose from the incident. Pina claimed that his broken nose healed well, but that he still experiences residual tingling and pain in his right elbow from time to time. He alleged that when he returned to work as an auto detailer, his elbow would occasionally bother him while lifting or pulling. Thus, Pina claimed $2,200 in past medical costs and asked the jury to award $50,000 in total damages, including recovery for his past and future pain and suffering. Defense counsel did not contest the severity of the plaintiff’s , but argued that it was Pina’s own fault for resisting arrest. Thus, counsel argued that Pina was owed zero damages.