Pubdate: Fri, 9 Oct. 1998 Source: Houston Chronicle (TX) Contact: http://www.chron.com/ Author: STEVE BREWER, Staff Copyright:: (c) 1998 Houston Chronicle Attorneys for the family of a man killed by Houston police officers during a botched drug raid in July said Thursday they would settle their possible future civil claims against the city for $35 million. A smaller amount would be accepted if the city agrees within 30 days to change policies and procedures in the Houston Police Department that led to the death of Pedro Oregon Navarro, attorneys Richard Mithoff and Paul Nugent said in a letter sent Thursday to city officials. Mithoff, representing Oregon's family, said the letter served as the proper legal notification required before a lawsuit is filed. "At this time, it is impossible know or describe the full extent of the suffering caused by this horrendous killing and the other brutal acts of the police," said the letter, signed by Mithoff and Nugent. "Not only did Pedro Oregon Navarro, an innocent man , lose his life in a brutal and inhumane manner, but his two children have forever lost their father and his mother has forever lost her son." Oregon, 22, died July 12 in a hail of bullets fired by six officers following up on an informant's tip that drugs were being sold in Oregon's southwest Houston home. A shot fired by one officer hit another officer in his bullet-resistant vest and knocked him to the floor, police have said. The officers apparently thought the shot had come from Oregon, and they opened fire. They fired about 30 rounds, 12 of which hit Oregon. Nine struck him in the back, one in the back of the head, one in back of the shoulder and one in the back of the hand. All six officers are on paid suspensions. The case is being investigated by police internal affairs and a Harris County grand jury that's been hearing testimony and looking at evidence for more than six weeks. No drugs were found in the apartment and Oregon did not fire at police, though a gun was found in the apartment. Oregon also had no drugs or alcohol in his system. In their letter, Mithoff and Nugent not only gave conditions for settling any future state or federal litigation, but they also asked city officials to preserve all evidence from the investigation into the shooting and listed some of the witnesses who could be called to testify. City officials had little comment on the matter. "We have an internal-affairs investigation under way and the district attorney's office obviously has a grand jury investigation it is pursuing," said City Attorney Anthony Hall. "When we get all the facts established and get some indication of what they are, we'll take the appropriate action." Mayor Lee Brown, through spokesman Don Payne, echoed Hall, saying he will comment on the case only after all the inquiries are complete. Mithoff said late Thursday the training of the officers involved was shoddy and that he hopes the incident forces the police department to make significant changes. "These were officers with marginal training and they're out in the middle of the night illegally entering someone's home and shooting him 12 times in the back, and there's no evidence he had any drugs or illegal contraband," Mithoff said. Mithoff also said he feels that Oregon's relatives are not getting due consideration from the city or the legal system because of their race. "This is not the kind of thing that would happen in River Oaks," Mithoff said, referring to one of the city's richest neighborhoods. "If it did happen in River Oaks we would have probably seen an indictment before sundown, but because this happened in the Hispanic community it's being handled differently." The grand jury investigation has produced a steady stream of witnesses and small protests outside the courthouse since late August. The panel will resume its work on the case Oct. 19. Prosecutors have said there was a scheduling conflict with a member of the panel and all 12 grand jurors want to be present when a decision or vote is made on possible criminal charges. - --- Checked-by: Rich O'Grady