Baldwin Park will pay $19.1 million to settle a lawsuit filed by a man wrongfully imprisoned for 33 years after a police detective allegedly “coerced” witnesses and “fabricated” evidence to justify the arrest.
Daniel Saldana was wrongfully arrested in 1990 and charged with attempted murder for a drive-by shooting in which a gang member fired at a car full of high school students and injured two. Saldana, 22 at the time, was convicted and sentenced, along with two of the true perpetrators, that same year, though no physical evidence tied him to the attack.
The only evidence against Saldana during the trial came from a compromised investigation, according to Saldana’s attorneys. They allege former Baldwin Park Police Detective Michael Donovan steered witnesses, who either didn’t see or bar

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