View this article online: https://www.claimsjournal.com/news/east/2010/02/23/107589.htm
The wife of a Bronx, New York man who was fatally shot by a police officer while defending his stepdaughter is suing for $285 million.
The wrongful death suit filed Friday names the city and Officer Michael Falcione.
Sandra Rodriguez says her late husband, Alex Figueroa, confronted several men he believed had harassed his 18-year-old stepdaughter.
The 2008 faceoff in a Bronx apartment building turned into a brawl that included the wife, the stepdaughter and a friend.
Plainclothes officers said Figueroa had a bat and they feared he might attack them. Witnesses told police the officers ordered him to freeze and drop the bat. One officer then fired, fatally wounding Figueroa.
His wife says she was standing next to him when he was shot, and had done nothing wrong.