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An X-ray and imaging clinic in North Hollywood appears poised to resolve a lawsuit accusing the Los Angeles Police Department of storming the facility under the false belief that it was an illegal marijuana grow — a raid that left an MRI machine catastrophically damaged by an officer’s rifle.

A Raid, a Magnetic Field, and a Stuck Rifle

The case captured nationwide attention after allegations surfaced that an LAPD officer stepped directly into the MRI room despite prominent warning signs, wandered into the machine’s magnetic field, and watched his rifle get sucked into the equipment like metal drawn to a gravitational vortex. In the chaos, he allegedly hit the emergency shutdown switch, effectively destroying the machine.

But the spectacle may end not with a public showdown, but a quiet financial settlement.

Parties Reach Conditional Agreement

In a joint motion filed Tuesday, NoHo Diagnostic Center and attorneys for the city told the California federal court they had reached a “full and complete conditional settlement.” The agreement still requires approval from both the Los Angeles City Council and the mayor’s office, the filing noted, and the parties asked the court to suspend all pending deadlines.

Behind the scenes, the LAPD sought to limit potential embarrassment.

City Blocks Release of Body-Cam Footage

According to filings from the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office, the department secured a protective order preventing certain evidence — including body-worn camera footage from the incident — from being released to the public.

The original lawsuit paints a vivid picture of a raid gone disastrously wrong.

Officer Mistook Clinic for Cannabis Grow Site

The complaint alleges that LAPD narcotics officer Kenneth Franco wrongly assumed the medical imaging clinic was operating as an illegal cannabis cultivation site. After obtaining a warrant, a team of officers swept the building.

They searched every room and found nothing unlawful. But trouble struck when one officer entered the MRI chamber, ignoring warnings about the device’s powerful magnetic field.

The machine immediately yanked the rifle hanging from the officer’s right hand, “securing it to the machine,” the lawsuit said.

Emergency Shutdown Destroys MRI

Rather than seek help from an employee or wait for the manager, the officer “unilaterally” decided to break the seal and hit the emergency shutdown button. That action triggered a rapid loss of the MRI magnet’s superconductivity, releasing roughly 2,000 liters of helium gas and causing extensive damage to the machine.

Legal Teams

NoHo Diagnostic Center is represented by Hayk Yeghoyan of YMPK Law Group LLP.

The City of Los Angeles and the LAPD are represented by Hydee Feldstein Soto, Denise C. Mills, Kathleen Kenealy, Cory M. Brente, and Jeremy B. Warren of the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office.