New article: title: "LA Must Pay $11.8 Million After Police Blinded a Celebrating Fan","LA Must Pay $11.8 Million After Police Blinded a Celebrating Fan"

Author: alternatino

src/content/posts/2026-04-17-la-must-pay-11-8-million-after-police-blinded-a-celebrating-fan.md

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+---
+title: "LA Must Pay $11.8 Million After Police Blinded a Celebrating Fan"
+description: "A jury ruled against LAPD for permanently blinding a college student during Dodgers celebrations. What it means for police crowd control."
+date: 2026-04-17 10:00:18 +0530
+author: adam
+image: 'https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1597495227772-d48ecb5f2639?q=80&w=2070'
+tags: [news, justice]
+tags_color: '#795548'
+---
+
+Los Angeles will pay $11.8 million to Isaac Castellanos, a college senior who was permanently blinded by a police projectile while peacefully celebrating the Dodgers' 2020 World Series win. According to AP reporting, a federal jury delivered the verdict Thursday after deliberating for less than two hours.
+
+The decision marks another reckoning for the Los Angeles Police Department over its use of what officials call "less lethal" munitions. But for Castellanos, the payout doesn't undo what was taken from him that night.
+
+## A Life Derailed in Seconds
+
+Castellanos was a senior at California State University, Long Beach when he was struck in the face early on October 28, 2020. He'd been celebrating downtown with friends when LAPD officers advanced toward the crowd and began firing projectiles without warning.
+
+The impact cost him vision in one eye. It also cost him what his attorney, Monique Alarcon, describes as a pivotal moment. Just weeks before he was hit, Castellanos had won first place in an esports tournament alongside a teammate, taking home a $40,000 prize. Professional gaming was his trajectory. Then it wasn't.
+
+"He was at a pivotal point in his life," Alarcon said. "And this completely derailed him."
+
+When the jury announced its decision, Castellanos sat beside his attorneys in tears. Alarcon said he feels "incredibly relieved and feels very vindicated." More importantly, she hopes the verdict forces LAPD to reconsider how it handles crowds.
+
+## A Pattern of Excessive Force
+
+This isn't an isolated incident. The LAPD has faced multiple lawsuits over its use of less lethal munitions for crowd control. In June, after journalists were hit by projectiles during protests, a federal judge blocked LA police from using rubber bullets and other such munitions against reporters. In January, another federal judge issued an injunction preventing the LAPD from using 40mm launchers in any crowd control situation.
+
+California attempted to set guardrails back in 2021, restricting when police can deploy less lethal force. Officers cannot fire indiscriminately into crowds, cannot aim at the head or neck or other vital organs, and cannot use these munitions solely for curfew violations or verbal non-compliance.
+
+The law exists because reality showed what happens without it. Castellanos learned that the hard way.
+
+What remains unclear is whether an $11.8 million settlement actually changes institutional behavior, or if it simply becomes another cost of [business](https://infeeds.com/tags/?tag=business) as usual.