Jury sets $40 million in damages for death of Long Beach pedestrian struck by CHP officer – Press Telegram

Cezannie Mount, 24, (center), died after being struck by a California Highway Patrol motorcycle trooper on Del Amo Boulevard in Long Beach on Oct. 27, 2019. He is pictured here with his family at his college graduation ceremony. (Photo courtesy of Annee Della Donna)

A Los Angeles County jury on Friday, June 21, set $40 million in damages for the death of a pedestrian in Long Beach. The pedestrian was killed by a speeding CHP motorcycle officer in 2019 because he suffered from an eye condition that impaired his vision.

A lawyer for the family of 24-year-old Cezannie Mount said Friday that retired police officer Alfredo Gutierrez reported his eye condition to his superiors but was not relieved of motorcycle duty.

“This family waited 4 1/2 years to find out what happened to their son and the CHP swept the truth under the rug,” said attorney Annee Della Donna, who represented the family along with attorney Eric Dubin. “(Gutierrez) had no business being on that motorcycle. He couldn’t see anything.”

Although Gutierrez’s eye condition was at the heart of the wrongful death lawsuit, it was not known to prosecutors and jurors when he was tried on involuntary manslaughter charges in May 2023. The trial ended in a hung jury, and Long Beach prosecutors decided not to retry the case.

In the lawsuit filed by Mount’s family, Della Donna and Dubin discovered Gutierrez’s eye problem while poring over his medical records. Della Donna accused the California Highway Patrol of failing to investigate the role Gutierrez’s diseased eye played in the early morning crash.

“When they arrived at the scene, all they saw was an injured police officer and a dead young black man … and their only concern was to exonerate the police officer,” she said.

A CHP officer arriving in Sacramento late Friday declined to comment on the jury’s verdict.

Gutierrez was driving to work when he encountered Mount on Del Amo Boulevard near Cherry Avenue at 4:40 a.m. on Oct. 27, 2019. Mount was walking along the median of the road. Gutierrez was reportedly traveling at nearly 70 mph in a 40 mph zone.

Although the accident occurred within the city limits of Long Beach, the CHP arrived and took over the investigation.

Partial records reviewed by the Southern California News Group show that Gutierrez went to a hospital emergency room a few days before the accident complaining of blurred vision in one eye. He was diagnosed with central serous chorioretinopathy, which can cause temporary visual impairment due to a buildup of fluid under the retina.

According to Dr. Catherine Sheils’ notes, Gutierrez complained in the emergency room that a “halo pattern” was affecting the vision in his left eye.

Gutierrez, who worked in the CHP’s South Los Angeles office, which serves South Bay and Long Beach, suffered serious injuries in the accident and retired due to health reasons.

Della Donna said the jury in Van Nuys deliberated for 1 1/2 days and found that Mount was 37% negligent for walking in the street, so the $40 million compensation award will likely be reduced to $25 million. She said jurors found the CHP and Gutierrez responsible for the lion’s share of the blame.