SUIT AGAINST OFFICER ALLEGES UNLAWFUL ACT

OAKLAND -- An Oakland police officer used unnecessary force when he fatally
shot a suspected drug dealer, according to a civil lawsuit filed in Alameda
County Superior Court.

Filed Dec. 7 on behalf of the mother of Nathan Hornes, 36, the suit alleges
Hornes was unlawfully shot in the neck by Officer Steve Nowak on Dec. 6,
1999. It seeks unspecified damages for wrongful death.

Nowak maintained he pulled Hornes over at 92nd Avenue and D Street, but
when he ordered Hornes out of the car, Hornes instead started the engine
and tried to run him down. A loaded semiautomatic handgun and nearly an
ounce of cocaine were found in Hornes' pants pocket, police said.

The lawsuit alleges that Nowak lied when he said Hornes attempted to run
him down, a fabrication that is "a pattern and practice of the Oakland
Police Department" to justify the use of deadly force.