Family seeks $20 million for California police shooting

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The family of a 22-year-old unarmed black man killed by police last year has filed a wrongful death lawsuit seeking more than $20 million from Sacramento and the two officers who opened fire.

The federal lawsuit filed Monday on behalf of Stephon Clark’s two sons, his parents and his grandparents contends that officers used excessive force and that he was a victim of racial profiling.

The suit names Terrance Mercadal and Jared Robinet as the Sacramento officers who said they thought Clark had a gun while running from police during a vandalism investigation. Investigators found only a cellphone.

The suit says they failed to identify themselves as police or warn that that deadly force would be used.

City Attorney Susana Alcala Wood declined comment because of the pending lawsuit.