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A federal district court judge has dismissed a lawsuit that alleged the city of Mountain View maliciously prosecuted a tow truck driver after he towed a City Council member’s vehicle from a downtown parking lot.
Felix Salcido, the plaintiff, claimed that he was unlawfully detained and arrested in retaliation for towing a vehicle in April 2023 that belonged to Mayor Ellen Kamei, who was a City Council member at the time, according to a complaint originally filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California in December 2024.
The most recent version of the lawsuit named the city of Mountain View, Kamei and the investigating Mountain View police officer as defendants.
Magistrate Judge Nathanael Cousins dismissed the lawsuit on Nov. 14, writing that Salcido “failed to plausibly allege that he was charged without probable cause,” or that alleged omissions in the police report or Kamei’s actions were “material to the finding of probable cause.”
The November ruling marked the third time that Cousins granted motions from the defendants’ to dismiss the case. This time around, he ruled that Salcido would not be permitted to amend his complaint and continue the lawsuit.
“Because Plaintiff has filed four complaints and engaged in discovery, the Court finds further leave to amend would be futile,” Cousins wrote.
Mountain View spokesperson Lenka Wright said the city was pleased with the court’s decision.
“The Court’s dismissal of the case affirms the defendants’ longstanding position that the lawsuit lacked merit,” Wright said in an emailed statement. “After being provided multiple opportunities to present a legally sufficient claim, the plaintiff failed to do so.”
An attorney for Salcido did not respond to a request for comment about the lawsuit.
The lawsuit alleged that Kamei pressured police to investigate and arrest Salcido, who worked for Ed’s Tow & Cradle, after he towed her vehicle from a parking lot at 745 Evelyn Ave.
According to the lawsuit, Kamei called the police chief to report concerns she had about the tow. The suit goes on to allege that Kamei used her political influence to sway the police to investigate Salcido.
The lawsuit claimed that the investigation led police to contact other people whose vehicles were towed from the Evelyn Avenue parking lot on the same day Kamei’s car was towed. One of the vehicle owners decided to press charges against Salcido, alleging his vehicle was illegally towed.
The criminal charges against Salcido were later dropped, according to court records.
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Hmm…was the mayor’s car illegally or legally towed?
I didn’t see that in the article.
Seems that would have been relevant.
It seems a bit fishy