Gabriel Cota was traveling with his girlfriend and his girlfriend’s daughter when they were stopped by the police for his tinted windows. Gabriel Cota was not able to be identified by the police. After an extensive ID search, police received a tip that Gabriel had a history with a weapon and possible assault on an officer (later to be unconfirmed). Police then went from conducting a traffic stop to a felony stop/high-risk job.
Police then told Gabriel to step out of the vehicle and show his hands. Police gave conflicting commands. Gabriel was wearing a seatbelt at the time and was trying to communicate this to the police. Gabriel put his hands out of the vehicle, but when he was told to get out, he would go to unbuckle himself, but was unable to complete the action due to the officer(s) shouting for him to keep his hands out where they could see them.
Gabriel, noticing the police had the guns pointed at their vehicle, Gabriel let the girlfriend’s daughter know that she needed to get down. Then the shots came from officer Sekona. Gabriel was hit in his back/chest and felt himself drowning in his blood.
At the time he was hit, his foot came off the pedal and the car began to roll forward. Due to fear for his family’s life and his own, Gabriel drove away, but shortly after stopped the vehicle. He ran out of the vehicle to avoid putting his family in further risk of being shot.
The police caught up to where the vehicle was stopped and pulled the girlfriend and the daughter out at gunpoint from the vehicle. Officer Sekona questioned the girlfriend about the whereabouts of Gabriel and hit her with his weapon, but was stopped by a nearby officer from further harm to the girlfriend. Gabriel was then captured after the police conducted a search within the area he ran from.
As Utah trial attorneys we can not stand idly by and let this injustice stand. At LifeLaw Trial Lawyers we are Gabriel Cota’s counsel and we will be pursuing the Saratoga Police Department to hold them accountable for the wrongful injuries that Gabriel Cota has suffered.
If you or someone you know has been injured or hurt by someone else’s negligence you do not have to suffer for it. Let the Utah trial attorneys at LifeLaw Trial Lawyers handle your case and get you the justice and compensation you deserve. Call us today for a free consultation and to start the process to justice.