Bellingham settles police racial profiling lawsuit involving teen sent to detention center
The city of Bellingham has settled a federal lawsuit in which a Bellingham Police officer was accused of racially profiling a then- 15-year-old in 2015 during a traffic stop that resulted in the boy being sent to an immigrant detention center in Tacoma.
Alfredo “Lelo” Juarez and his parents filed a federal civil rights lawsuit in late April 2016 in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington against the city of Bellingham, Bellingham Police Officer Zackery Serad, the mayor and police chief, according to federal court records.
At its July 12 meeting, the Bellingham City Council voted 5 to 0, with 2 excused, to dismiss the federal lawsuit, resolving all claims. The settlement included the city paying $100,000 to Juarez and his family.
The settlement was approved and the lawsuit was dismissed with prejudice July 29, federal court records show.
Juarez’s attorney, Lawrence Hildes, said Juarez and his family have assurances from the city that a similar incident will not happen again. Hildes said some policies are changing in light of the incident and acknowledged that the community was considering several police reform policies.
Hildes thanked the city for negotiating and resolving the matter in good faith.
“We want to make sure there was a sufficient monetary settlement so they have a strong incentive not to let this happen again, and I think we did,” Hildes said in an interview with The Bellingham Herald. “It was a long six years, but we are confident that they understand what was wrong with the previous conduct and why it was racially biased and that they’re taking appropriate measures to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
Hildes said Juarez was “very relieved” the lawsuit was resolved, and that the settlement allows him to move on with his life and prepares him to succeed in the future.
Serad was accused of racially profiling Juarez after Serad pulled the then-teenager over in late June 2015 for driving the wrong way on a one-way street, according to court records and previous stories in The Herald.
Body camera footage of the traffic stop shows Juarez telling police he’s 18 years old and claiming to have Washington and California driver’s licenses. Juarez was 15 at the time. Serad has difficulty verifying Juarez’s identity and later takes him out of the car and asks about Juarez’s immigration status. Juarez tells Serad he’s not a U.S. resident, but said he was applying for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
Serad then called U.S. Customs and Border Protection after learning of Juarez’s immigration status. Police said Serad thought Juarez’s identity could be verified through federal databases, according to Herald archives.
Juarez was taken into custody by CBP officers and sent to the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma before being released to his family about 24 hours after the initial traffic stop, court records and Herald archives show.
The Bellingham Police Department determined Serad acted within department policies during the traffic stop. An internal investigation found Serad’s traffic stop and attempts to confirm Juarez’s identity were lawful and in compliance with department policies, previous Herald stories state.
