Nearly nine years after a fatal confrontation in Massachusetts, a federal civil rights lawsuit against a former Fall River police officer is poised to move before a jury. A federal magistrate judge has officially recommended that claims of excessive force proceed to trial in connection with the November 2017 death of 19-year-old Larry Ruiz-Barreto.
In a comprehensive report and recommendation submitted to U.S. District Judge George O'Toole, Magistrate Judge Jennifer Boal determined that substantial, unresolved factual disputes remain regarding the fatal shooting. Boal concluded that the victim's family had brought forth adequate evidence to allow a reasonable jury to find that the teenager presented no active danger to law enforcement when he was killed.
The deadly encounter took place late on the night of November 12, 2017, in the vicinity of the Fall River Industrial Park. Officers were initially dispatched to the intersection of Airport Road and Riggenbach Road following reports describing smoke, fire, and loud noises linked to an apparent drag racing gathering.
While several vehicles dispersed upon the arrival of law enforcement, Ruiz-Barreto remained at the location in his vehicle. The ensuing interaction between the teenager and then-Officer Nicholas Hoar quickly escalated into a fatal discharge of gunfire, sparking years of legal disputes and community scrutiny.
In November 2020, Ruiz-Barreto’s surviving family initiated a major federal civil rights lawsuit naming Hoar, the City of Fall River, and several other responding officers as defendants. Although the plaintiffs originally sought $34 million in compensatory and punitive damages, that financial demand was later modified to approximately $10 million.
The core of the litigation centers on diametrically opposed narratives concerning how the shooting transpired. According to Hoar, he approached the vehicle and issued repeated commands to stop, but Ruiz-Barreto drove directly toward him, striking his legs and forcing him onto the hood of the car. Hoar maintained that he fired six shots through the windshield because he feared for his life.
Conversely, passengers who were inside the car at the time—including Ruiz-Barreto's father—provided an entirely different account of the encounter. The eyewitnesses testified that the vehicle remained in park throughout the entire interaction and that Hoar approached with his weapon already drawn. They stated that Hoar shouted something unintelligible before opening fire immediately after the teenager raised his hands.
Faced with these irreconcilable versions of the event, Magistrate Judge Boal underscored that determining credibility is a function reserved exclusively for a jury. Under federal civil procedural standards, courts evaluating motions for summary judgment must view contested evidence in the light most favorable to the non-moving party, which in this instance supported the plaintiffs' claim of an unprovoked constitutional violation.
Consequently, the magistrate judge denied Hoar’s bid for qualified immunity regarding the excessive force claim. Qualified immunity protects public officials from civil liability unless their conduct violates clearly established constitutional rights, an exemption that Boal determined could not shield Hoar given the plaintiffs' sworn factual assertions.
The magistrate judge's findings did not fully favor the plaintiffs across all aspects of the lawsuit. Boal recommended granting summary judgment in favor of the City of Fall River, noting that the family failed to demonstrate that Ruiz-Barreto’s fatal shooting was the direct consequence of any municipal custom, official policy, or institutional practice.
Boal further recommended the dismissal of several ancillary allegations against the individual officers prior to trial, including claims alleging conspiracy, false arrest, and certain other civil rights violations.
However, the magistrate recommended allowing excessive force and failure-to-intervene claims to proceed against other officers regarding a chaotic physical altercation at the hospital following Ruiz-Barreto's death. Family members alleged they were subjected to unlawful physical force by officers during that encounter while other personnel failed to step in.
The initial local investigation into the shooting concluded in March 2018, when the Bristol County District Attorney’s Office determined that Hoar's use of deadly force was legally justified. Despite that finding, federal civil proceedings have continued to scrutinize the department's conduct.
Hoar, who is the brother of Fall River's current interim Police Chief J.T. Hoar, later resigned from the municipal police force after facing separate federal criminal charges. In 2024, a federal jury convicted the former officer of deprivation of rights under color of law and submitting false reports in an unrelated police brutality prosecution, resulting in a 33-month prison sentence.
Judge O'Toole will now consider the magistrate's recommendations to determine the final scope of the upcoming federal trial. Should the court adopt the findings, the case will bring the disputed 2017 shooting before a federal jury nearly a decade after Ruiz-Barreto lost his life.
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