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Eric Valenzuela

Litigation Attorney

Education

J.D., Southern California Institute of Law, 2010 (Magna Cum Laude)
B.A., Art Education, California State University, Los Angeles, 2006

Admission

United States District Court, Central District of California
United States District Court, Southern District of California
United States District Court, Eastern District of California
United States District Court, Northern District of California
State of California
State of Nevada
State of New Mexico
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals
Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals
United States District Court, Eastern District of Arizona (pro hoc vice)
United States District Court, District of Colorado (pro hoc vice)
United States District Court, District of Nevada (pro hoc vice)
United States District Court, District of New Mexico (pro hoc vice)

Languages

Spanish

Affiliation

MABA Member

Eric Valenzuela The Morning Wrap CBS News

Overview

Eric Valenzuela was raised in the East Los Angeles area and is the son of immigrant parents from Mexico. Mr. Valenzuela is also an avid dog lover who enjoys spending his free time with his two dogs (Smokey and Maggie). With over 11 years of civil rights litigation experience at the Law Offices of Dale K. Galipo, Mr. Valenzuela almost exclusively litigates civil rights police excessive force cases resulting in death or serious bodily injury. Mr. Valenzuela has litigated nearly 100 police misconduct cases, most of them shooting death cases. All of the cases in which Mr. Valenzuela second-chaired at trial, Plaintiffs prevailed on their constitutional violation claims. Mr. Valenzuela has directly contributed to numerous high six-figure, seven-figure settlements and three multi-million dollar verdicts in civil rights police excessive force cases. Mr. Valenzuela has also experience litigating criminal trials and personal injury trials. Since 2013, some of the seven-figure settlements Mr. Valenzuela won for his clients include:

$900,000 settlement: Newmaker v. City of Fortuna, Northern District of California Case No. C 12-4675 PJH (Police Shooting Death);

$1,200,000 settlement: Cordova v. Stockton, Eastern District of California Case No. 2:17-CV-00931-WBS-AC (Taser/Asphyxia);

$1,500,000 settlement: Henning v. County of Los Angeles, Central District of California Case No. 2:13-cv-01156-GW-JCG (Police Shooting Death);

$2,100,000 settlement: Burch v. County of San Bernardino, Central District of California Case No. 2:11-cv-06157-FMO-SP (Shooting);

$1,400,000 settlement: Herrera v. Tustin, Central District of California Case No. 8:12-cv-01547-JLS-RNB (Police Shooting Death);

$2,000,000 settlement: Opsitnick v. City of Long Beach, Central District of California Case No. 2:14-cv-09370-PLA (Police Shooting Death);

$1,900,000 settlement: Sanchez v. City of El Monte, Central District of California Case No. Case No. 2:17-cv-03235-GW-AJW (Police Shooting Death);

$3,750,000 settlement: Weber v. County of Los Angeles, Central District of California Case No. 2:18-cv-03684-FMO-AGR (Police Shooting Death of a Minor);

$1,200,000 settlement: Pimental v. City of Stockton, Eastern District of California Case No. 2:17-cv-00931-WBS-AC (Police Asphyxia Death);

Mr. Valenzuela has also briefed six police excessive force cases on appeal before the Ninth Circuit. These published opinions have created beneficial law for the plaintiffs’ bar in the area of civil rights excessive force and are routinely cited. Further, Mr. Valenzuela has also successfully argued civil rights police excessive force cases before the Ninth Circuit.

As the firm’s senior associate, Mr. Valenzuela typically handles complex and factually difficult excessive force cases that involve novel issues of law. Many of the Plaintiffs and witnesses in civil rights police excessive force cases are Spanish-speaking only, to which Mr. Valenzuela finds great joy in being able to communicate with and make them feel comfortable sharing their stories.

Webber v. County of Los Angeles

Anthony Weber, a young 16 year-old African American who was unarmed when he was fatally shot 16 times, including multiple shots while he was already on the ground, on the night of super bowl Sunday, by two members of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department. Deputies attempted to allege that Anthony had a gun but someone must have picked it up and ran off with it after the shooting. The evidence clearly showed that Anthony was unarmed during the incident and that no one entered the area near Anthony’s body and took off with his gun (which most likely would have resulted in 2 homicides instead of just 1).