“These cases amount to legalized extortion,” says attorney Jim Link who has defended dozens of local businesses against Garcia lawsuits.
Alfredo Garcia, a notorious serial plaintiff, convicted felon and undocumented immigrant, has been deported to Mexico. Garcia made it his business to sue small businesses, filing more than 800 lawsuits against businesses in the Los Angeles area for alleged violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Garcia hasn’t held a job since he fell out of an avocado tree while he was drinking and high on cocaine about 18 years ago. Garcia’s back was broken, his spinal cord severed. Since then, he’s made a living off these lawsuits. It’s incredibly profitable, for Garcia and his longtime attorney Morse Mehrban.
Based on previously disclosed settlements, Eyewitness News can estimate that Garcia has collected approximately $1.2 million from business owners since he began filing lawsuits in 2007.
At the same time, Garcia applies for and receives fee waivers from the courts by claiming he is too poor to pay the court fees associated with the lawsuits. That means taxpayers pick up the tab.
Garcia typically sues small mom-and-pop type businesses, but among his 811 lawsuits, big names like Wal-Mart, Bank of America and Jamba Juice are also included. He’s also sued dozens of restaurants, auto-repair shops, a medical clinic where he received rehab, a lawyer who deposed him, the city of Cudahy and dozens of Laundromats.
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