County Told to Pay Legal Fees for Defending Deputy in Slaying

A federal judge ordered Los Angeles County on Monday to pay $134,000 in attorneys fees in a case involving a drunk off-duty sheriff’s deputy who shot and killed a man outside a Rowland Heights bar in 1994.

U.S. District Judge Harry Hupp said he found it reasonable to pay attorney Carol Watson $125 an hour for hundreds of hours of work she spent on her civil litigation against the county.

In October, Watson won a $750,000 judgment in federal court for the family of a 29-year-old Rowland Heights man who was shot and killed by Deputy Thomas Kirsch. Because the case involved a civil rights claim, Watson was allowed to request fees in a separate action.

Although the county argued that Kirsch was not acting “under the color” of law when he shot John Huffman in August 1994, the jury found that the Sheriff’s Department should be held liable because it encourages its deputies to carry their weapons off duty.

The problems between Huffman and Kirsch--who had both been drinking at Whitney’s Steak House--apparently started when Huffman challenged Kirsch to a wrestling match.

Kirsch claimed that his gun accidentally discharged after Huffman knocked him down. Forensic evidence presented during the federal trial showed that gun was placed directly against Huffman’s chest.

The deputy, who remains on the force, was not charged in the incident because the district attorney’s office found there was not enough evidence to prosecute.