Slain man's family files $25 million lawsuit against police

The setting for the news conference about a $25 million civil rights lawsuit was a makeshift shrine on the site where 32-year-old John Perrin was shot to death a month ago by a Metro Police officer.

As Las Vegas attorney Brent Bryson and California civil rights lawyer John Burris talked to reporters about the shooting death of the unarmed man and blistered Metro with allegations of wrongdoing, the family and friends of the slain man huddled behind them.

Some cried as Bryson pointed to yellow marks on the sidewalk where he said Perrin died.

Perrin was shot to death by Officer Bruce Gentner, who stopped the unarmed, basketball-bouncing 32-year-old in a desert area near Rainbow Boulevard and Tropicana Avenue.

Gentner told a coroner's inquest last week that he stopped Perrin because he thought Perrin had been involved in a drug transaction moments before and because Perrin looked like a man sought in connection with a nearby October burglary.

Gentner said that Perrin kept digging into his waistband, despite the officer's orders to show his hands, and pulled out what the officer believed was a pistol. Gentner testified that he feared for his life and fired a total of 14 shots, hitting Perrin six times.

The coroner's jury ruled the death was justifiable.

"I'm here to tell you that although Gentner may not face criminal charges, there is going to be accountability," Bryson said.

The federal lawsuit was filed minutes before Wednesday's news conference on behalf of the dead man's mother, Connie Perrin, and his brothers, James and Philip Perrin.

Mentioned in the lawsuit but not yet named as a plaintiff is John Perrin's unborn child, whose mother is Amy Harouff. After the birth and the establishment of paternity, the child will be added to the legal action, the lawsuit stated.

"The facts seem to be blatant examples of excessive force," said Burris, an Oakland attorney who helped win a $3.8 million award for Rodney King.

The number of shots fired, he said, raises questions about Gentner's state of mind "and whether he panicked."

One focus of the wrongful death lawsuit will be the training Gentner received as a Metro officer.

The lawsuit alleges Metro "had prior notice of the vicious propensity of Gentner and of his disregard for the civil rights of citizens, but took no steps to train him, correct his abuse of authority or discourage his misconduct."

The lawsuit did not elaborate on the allegation.

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