Pasco police-shooting death leads to family’s lawsuit

The family of a Mexican migrant worker shot dead in February by Pasco police filed a federal lawsuit Thursday demanding $25 million in damages from the city.

Antonio Zambrano-Montes, 35, was reportedly throwing rocks at cars when three officers fired 17 shots at him on Feb. 10, according to investigators. Zambrano-Montes had previous interactions with Pasco police, including with one of the officers who shot him, Adam Wright. Wright had dragged the 35-year-old from a burning building just weeks before the shooting.

The shooting was captured on video and posted to YouTube. Activists have called for a federal investigation into the shooting. Zambrano-Montes was unarmed at the time.

The lawsuit filed Thursday names the city of Pasco, Wright, fellow officers Ryan Flanagan and Adrian Alaniz, and the Pasco Police Department. It was filed on behalf of Zambrano-Montes’ widow, Teresa De Jesus Meraz, and alleges civil rights violations by the officers and poor training and employment screening by the city and police department.

The shooting prompted multiple protests in Pasco, whose population is more than half Hispanic.