The Murder And Slaughter Of The Notorious B.I.G. Continues!
SIDEBAR --
The ongoing legal actions surrounding the 1997 murder of the Notorious B.I.G. (born Christopher Wallace) hit another bump in the road on Monday when a federal judge dismissed a second wrongful-death lawsuit filed by the rapper's family against the city of Los Angeles and former LAPD officer Rafael Pérez.
U.S. District Court Judge Florence-Marie Cooper sided with the defendants and dismissed the case — filed in April — on the grounds that Biggie's family didn't file the claim against the city within the designated time frame. "This was not the primary civil-rights claim, that suit is still going forward," explained Perry Sanders, the lead attorney in the Wallace family's ongoing wrongful-death suit against the city and LAPD.
"This was a standalone action based on state laws, but the rigorous rules state that if you don't file suit within six months of the injury, then the suit cannot go forward, and we didn't find out that Pérez was on duty until August 2006." The April suit alleged that Pérez conspired with fellow former police officers David Mack and Nino Durden to murder the famous rapper and that the city of Los Angeles covered up the officers' involvement to avoid being tangled in a lawsuit that would make the city liable in the killing.
New evidence recently uncovered indicated that Pérez was on duty the night of the rapper's death, though the officer has denied any involvement. Court's Adjourned! MTV ...