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He Went To Celebrate The Lakers Win. And Came Home With His Arm Broken By LAPD.

In 2022, Pablo Vera sued the City of Los Angeles and the LAPD for excessive force and violating his civil rights. Six years after the alleged attack, Vera finally had his day in court.

Photo by Erwin Recinos for L.A. TACO.

Welcome to L.A. TACO’s weekly Investigations Newsletter, I’m Lexis-Olivier Ray, the Head of Investigations for L.A. TACO.

After a year of tremendous loss, Pablo Vera finally had something to celebrate when the Lakers won their 17th NBA title on October 11, 2020, nearly a year after Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna were among the nine people tragically killed in a helicopter crash in Calabasas.

A lifelong Laker fan, Vera went out that night to take in the historic victory and document the events that unfolded.