LAPD officer found not liable in fellow officer’s training death; family plans to appeal

LOS ANGELES () — A Los Angeles County Superior Court jury reached a verdict Wednesday in the multimillion-dollar lawsuit over the death of a Los Angeles Police Department officer and allegations of a department-wide conspiracy.

The jury found the Los Angeles Police Department and Officer David Cuellar not liable in the 2022 death of fellow officer Houston Tipping. The Tipping family plans to appeal, according to one of their attorneys Brad Gage. Attorney Mark Geragos also represented the family.

Gage says the jury deliberated three days, Friday, Tuesday and Wednesday, before reaching the verdict.

Tipping’s parents had sought multimillion-dollar damages, alleging that their son was killed during a training class grappling exercise after he began an internal affairs investigation into Cuellar after a woman said Cuellar sexually assaulted her.

Both officers ended up in the same LAPD training class and that is where Tipping’s parents say Cuellar volunteered to partner with Tipping for a grappling exercise, then hit and kicked him to the point where he broke three of Tipping’s ribs and perforated his liver.

Gage says Cuellar then intentionally broke Tipping’s neck.

“(Cuellar) does a pile driver, paralyzing him, puts Houston in the hospital,” Gage told the jury in closing arguments Friday. “Three days later he is brain dead.”

LA City attorney Steven McGuire represented Cuellar and the LAPD. He cited testimony from five other officers who witnessed the incident, all of whom said Tipping actually picked up Cuellar, then fell awkwardly on his own head.

McGuire says testimony from medical experts showed the broken ribs and liver injuries were attributed to CPR and medical efforts to save Tipping.

“It didn’t come from the baton, being punched, kicked – we didn’t see evidence of that,” said McGuire. “Clearly the broken ribs came from the CPR.”