A federal jury on Tuesday found that Fresno police Sgt. Mike Palomino used excessive and unreasonable force when he shot and killed a man who was unarmed but high on drugs in October 2009.
A six-man, two-woman jury deliberated for the better part of two days before unanimously finding that the city was liable for the death of Steven Anthony Vargas, who was shot eight times by Palomino as he sat in an SUV after crashing it into a van parked in an East McKinley Avenue driveway.
The same jury, however, cleared Fresno police Chief Jerry Dyer of any role in the Vargas shooting.
In a complex ruling, jurors also were unable to reach any verdict on a wrongful-death claim that included Dyer, Palomino and the city.
