A federal judge has ruled against a San Diego family who claimed their two young children developed asthma as a result of a postal worker repeatedly pepper-spraying their family dog through their front gate.
U.S. District Judge Janis Sammartino issued her decision Thursday, finding that the Galindo family failed to prove by a preponderance of evidence that mail carrier Nestor Medina’s alleged pepper-spraying of their small white poodle mix, Pupa, caused their children to develop respiratory conditions.
The Galindo family, residents of San Diego’s Otay Mesa border community, had sought $800,000 in damages – $400,000 for each child – claiming that Medina maliciously pepper-sprayed their pet on multiple occasions between fall 2018 and March 2019. According to the family’s allegations, their children, Alfoncito and Regina, who were ages 1 and 3 at the time, subsequently developed asthma.
During the trial, which began May 11 and concluded with closing arguments on May 21, the family’s legal team from Casey Gerry LLP presented home surveillance footage that they argued showed Medina approaching the front gate to deliver mail while simultaneously pepper-spraying the dog through the barrier. The videos appeared to show the animal convulsing and exhibiting signs of distress following these encounters.
Attorney Jason Evans, representing the family, emphasized that the children had a close relationship with Pupa, frequently playing with the dog and allowing it to sleep in their beds. He argued that exposure to pepper spray residue on the dog severely impacted the young children’s respiratory systems.
The case took several turns regarding Medina’s involvement. During an internal review, Medina initially acknowledged spraying the dog once but later recanted, stating he had only made the admission to resolve the matter quickly. Throughout the trial, Medina maintained he never sprayed the animal. Despite being terminated from his position, he successfully regained his mail carrier job through arbitration.
The family testified that their children’s health showed improvement after Medina was removed from their delivery route in March 2019, though they reported ongoing respiratory issues including recurring coughs.
Department of Justice attorneys representing the federal government presented alternative explanations for the children’s health problems. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Riley argued during closing arguments that the asthma diagnosis was more likely linked to repeated viral infections that coincided with Alfoncito’s enrollment in daycare. The defense also noted that the improvement in the children’s condition aligned with both the end of cold season and the commencement of asthma medication.
Government attorneys suggested additional potential causes for the respiratory issues, including exposure to cleaning products from the family’s business, secondhand marijuana smoke, or local air pollution.
In her 13-page order, Judge Sammartino acknowledged that Medina had breached his duty of care by pepper-spraying Pupa without provocation. However, she found the government’s expert witness testimony more compelling, concluding that the children’s history of viral illnesses in early childhood was the probable cause of their asthma rather than exposure to pepper spray.
The judge noted that according to Dr. Cornfield, the government’s expert, pepper spray would not have aerosolized and entered the children’s airways under the circumstances described. She further observed that no family members testified to experiencing other typical pepper spray symptoms such as facial or eye irritation, nor did anyone report seeing or smelling pepper spray on or near the dog.
The Galindo family had initiated their negligence lawsuit against the federal government in 2023, seeking compensation for both past and future harm to their children.
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