Jury rules in favor of Chula Vista police officers in fatal 2020 encounter

A San Diego federal jury ruled in favor of a group of Chula Vista police officers Tuesday in a civil trial stemming from lawsuits alleging excessive force was used by the lawmen while responding to a mental health call, resulting in a man's death.

In a verdict returned Tuesday afternoon, jurors found that four responding officers were not negligent and did not use excessive force against 56-year-old Oral Nunis, whose family members called 911 on March 13, 2020, after he tried to jump from a second-story window at his daughter's home

Attorneys representing the family argued Nunis calmed down and was willing to leave the home with police to undergo a mental health evaluation, but became agitated when the first responding officer insisted on handcuffing him.

Nunis then ran out of the home, where he was subdued and held on the ground by a group of officers. A restraint device called a WRAP was placed on Nunis, as well as a mesh spit hood.

Nunis was later moved into an ambulance but stopped breathing, went into cardiac arrest, and later died at a hospital. No drugs or alcohol were detected in his system.

Anthony Sain, an attorney representing the city of Chula Vista, told jurors that based on what was reported to officers during the 911 call and how Nunis acted after officers arrived, the officers acted reasonably.

Sain said that before any officers arrived, they were told Nunis had physically struggled with his own family members as they tried to prevent him from leaping out of the window.

The attorney said "5150" calls, in which a subject can be involuntarily detained while in the midst of a mental health crisis, are among the most dangerous ones officers face, can easily turn violent, and that "securing" the person as quickly as possible is in line with police training.

Once outside the home, Nunis wasn't complying with officers' commands and was physically combative, Sain said. Though the officers outweighed the diminutive Nunis, who stood at about 5-feet-4, Sain argued that Nunis was able to fight and struggle with the officers for several minutes.

The family's attorneys argued the officers didn't follow proper protocols for dealing with someone undergoing a mental health crisis and that they ignored the risks associated with positional asphyxia by pinning Nunis to the ground.

Sain argued that a medical examiner ruled out asphyxia as a contributing factor, and that the WRAP device and spit hood do not constrict breathing. Instead, Sain argued Nunis' death was caused instead by exertion and stress, stating that by struggling with the officers, he "fought so hard that he overtaxed his body."

In 2021, the San Diego County District Attorney's Office announced that no criminal charges would be brought against any of the officers involved.