Back in 2014, 54 year-old Frank Mendoza was standing in his doorway in Pico Rivera was he was fatally shot by the LAPD in pursuit of a suspect. Now the city will pay Mendoza’s family $14.3 Million for their tragic loss as part of the Los Angeles wrongful death settlement.

Daily Mail reports on the details of the LAPD wrongful death lawsuit, “Mendoza was shot when he came out of his home on Pico Rivera on August 1, 2014, after a wanted parolee and gang member Cedric Ramirez broke in and fired at deputies. The deputy that killed Mendoza mistakenly thought he was the gunman.”

A mistake that can not be undone, why are some wrongful death payouts so high and some low, if anything. Most of this hinges on who the defendant is. If the defendant is a city, government agency or large corporate then that usually means that your lawyers can seek and get larger financial payouts like this one because these defendants (if found at least partially responsible, of course) can actually pay them.

Conversely, if someone is killed by a driver that has little or no car insurance, it is hard to get paid more than the policy limits because the responsible party simply does not have the money. Sure, you might be able to get a large judgement but getting a large judgement and actually getting paid might be two very different things.

Los Angeles wrongful death cases are major personal injury cases that we have four decades of experience successfully handling. While the payment (large or small) will never bring your loved one back, it can help provide a sense of justice for the otherwise senseless death and the payout can greatly help ease any financial strain a family is now experiencing because of the loss of the loved one. At Walch Law, we work hard to maximize your wrongful death payment– if you have lost a loved one and believe or know another party is at least partially responsible, get in touch with us immediately to discuss your legal options further. We are available 24/7 and take all our cases on a contingency fee basis meaning you do not pay us a penny until we get you paid.