Long Beach Family Sues Police Over Withheld Crash Records

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The family of a bicyclist who died after an October crash is suing the Long Beach Police Department, accusing investigators of stonewalling them on critical records about the wreck and its aftermath. They say the department wrongfully refused to release reports and documents they need to understand what happened, how the case was handled, and whether anyone dropped the ball. The family also learned from news coverage, not from police, that the same driver tied to the October collision was later re-arrested in a separate January crash that killed two people.

Why it matters

This case highlights the tension between investigative secrecy and a grieving family's right to know the details of a fatal crash. Open-government advocates argue that families in such cases are often entitled to at least redacted versions of investigative files, which can be crucial for civil lawsuits or for testing whether police and other agencies handled a case properly.

The details

According to the lawsuit, the Long Beach Police Department rejected the family's public-records requests for crash reports, witness statements, and other investigative documents, citing the materials as part of an ongoing criminal file. The family only learned of the driver's re-arrest in connection with the January collision by reading news coverage, not through any direct outreach from police. The family's attorney says they plan to press forward with the lawsuit even as the department works to release additional documents.

• On October 6, 2025, 35-year-old bicyclist Raul Augustin Gallopa was struck while riding on East Fourth Street.
• Gallopa died from his injuries on October 20, 2025.
• On January 4, 2026, the same driver linked to the October crash was involved in a separate collision at Atlantic Avenue and East Sixth Street that killed two people and injured three others.
• On January 7, 2026, the driver turned herself in and was booked on a warrant for felony vehicular manslaughter related to the October crash.

What they’re saying

What’s next

A key complaint in the lawsuit is that the Galloppa family only learned of the driver's re-arrest in connection with the January collision by reading news coverage, not through any direct outreach from police. The Long Beach Police Department says it has already handed the October case to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office and plans to submit the January collision for review in the coming days. How that review plays out will shape any criminal charges stemming from the January crash and will also influence which investigative records can eventually be released to the family and the wider public.