Civil Rights Suit Against BHPD Will Go Forward

A civil rights lawsuit against the Beverly Hills Police Department is being allowed to proceed.

The Los Angeles Times reports that a federal judge refused to dismiss the case Friday, likely forcing investigators to reveal evidence gathered in a related criminal investigation.

Gary Klein, 59, charges in the lawsuit that Beverly Hill detectives harassed him and tried to implicate him in his wife's death.

According to the Times article, Klein remains a suspect in his wife Rina's death, though no charges have been filed.

The Times says Klein's civil lawsuit claims that detectives repeatedly searched his house and interviewed his family, hoping to find evidence that might show he helped cause his wife's death.

The Times says that Klein's attorney hopes that opening up evidence gathered by police will also show the way it was obtained, and that it may have violated the law.

Beverly Hills had argued in court papers that the suit should either be thrown out of court or put on hold while the criminal investigation continues.

According to the Times U.S. District Judge John F. Walter rejected that claim, saying, "“Defendants fail to identify any specific actions that they have taken to further the investigation since 2011, or identify any actions that they believe are necessary to complete their investigation." 

Klein's wife Rina died in a hospital after a seizure. One autopsy showed the cause of death to be lupus.

The Times says the police exhumed her body did a second autopsy may have changed the cause to "undetermined."

It is alleged Rina Klein had been taking a variety of medications, and told her family she feared her husband might cause her death.