NEW ORLEANS — A New Orleans family has announced they're filing a lawsuit against Jefferson Parish Sheriff Joe Lopinto and some of his deputies accusing them of using excessive force. Last summer a deputy shot and killed a man they say was trying to escape and then drove towards a deputy.
WWL Louisiana's Eleanor Tabone sat down with Calvin Cain's mother and his best friend days after the shooting, now the family is suing the sheriff's office. Part of this story was shot last June and this is the first time WWL Louisiana is sharing this interview.
Haley Martin, Calvin Cains III was her best friend, she said, "He was my whole heart, Calvin was just Calvin."
At the time of the shooting, Lopinto said NOPD asked for help in locating the man suspected in a shooting in New Orleans. Armed with the information that the suspect lived in The Lumiere apartment complex in the 3300 block of West Esplanade, Lopinto said officers found a car identified in the New Orleans shooting and waited for the suspect."
At a press conference after the shooting, the sheriff said, "They attempted to block that vehicle in which he tried to make his escape from it. Running into the back of the fence, turning the vehicle wheels forward, where I had one of my deputies approaching him at that time. My deputy ended up firing shots into the windshield."
Mallory Woodfork, Calvin's mother told Eleanor Tabone last year she watched her child die, saying, "My son Calvin, walked out the building... I'm watching my son, I could tell he was on FaceTime because of how he was holding the phone. I saw when he turned where the car was at, and as soon he got in the car, I saw a white F-150, whatever pickup truck, when boom, bam, and I heard shots instantly."
Martin said on that fatal day she was on Facetime with him as he was walking to his car, saying, "He put the phone up, he sit down. As soon as gets ready to start the car, I just heard a car crash, the phone just dropped to the floor. So I am like 'Calvin, Calvin, Calvin,' he's not saying nothing. So I hung up the phone. I call back he doesn't answer. I call back again, he doesn't answer. I call back, he doesn't answer."
A year ago, Woodfork described to WWL the moment she learned her child would no longer call her mom, saying, "The detectives kept saying, that's his mom, that's his mom."
She tearfully recalled the moment a member of law enforcement told her Cain was gone.
"He squatted down to me and looked me in my eyes and said, 'There's no other way I could tell you, but he didn't make it,'" Woodfork recounted. "And as soon as he told me that, I just grabbed his brother and I started crying."
Now the family is calling for justice.
Lawyer Bobby DiCello said, "She needs to know that her community is safe and this lawsuit is about exploring the problems in Jefferson Parish."
The family's legal team is pushing for JPSO to release the body camera video.
DiCello said, "It's a chance to get to the bottom of the story, a story the Jefferson Parish sheriff will not allow to be told. If Calvin did wrong, it would be on that video."
Woodfork said, "I want him to release the bodycam, release the camera."
The family still maintains Calvin never started the car and drove towards a deputy. Woodfork said last year, "He didn't move, he didn't have the opportunity to move. And I was there. His mama witnessed his murder. I was just 15 feet away."
Days after the June 2023 shooting Martin was still coming to terms with the fact her best friend whom she spoke to every day, was no longer around to answer her calls, she said, "I ain't talk to him since it happened, it's crazy because we talk all the time."
The sheriff's office said they do not comment on pending litigation.
Lawyers say the suit is being filed in federal court. Calvin would have turned 20 next week.