By Front Page Detective Staff ,
2 hours ago
Sacramento police Officer Matthew Sterling smiled as he knelt over Nyota Koya, according to a screenshot from bodycam footage in the lawsuit. BY: SACRAMENTO POLICE DEPARTMENT
The daughter of a 66-year-old Black woman who died a week after a 2024 Sacramento police encounter sued the officer, alleging he smiled while kneeling over her mother.
Daughter sued officer and city over mother’s death
Koya, 66, was stranded at Haggin Oaks Golf Course after her electric vehicle ran out of battery. BY: GOOGLE STREET VIEW
Nathifa Wright sued Sacramento police Officer Matthew Sterling, the City of Sacramento, the police department and former Police Chief Katherine Lester over the death of her mother, Nyota Koya, according to Atlanta Black Star .
The lawsuit, filed by Koya’s estate and Wright in September 2025, accused the defendants of excessive force, false detention and wrongful death among 17 claims.
It was before U.S. Magistrate Judge Chi Soo Kim in the U.S. District Court in Sacramento.
Koya, of Roseville, lost consciousness during an encounter with Sterling on November 17, 2024, and died at a hospital a week later.
The encounter happened at Haggin...