Juan Antonio Obeso Soto
Juan Antonio Obeso Soto, 30, was survived by his mother, his wife and two sons. Police arrested him outside a Torrance bakery, and on October 8, 2021, he was held at a City of Torrance jail facility, where a family lawsuit says he hanged himself with a telephone cord about 20 minutes after being placed in a cell. The lawsuit says he had told staff people were trying to kill him, that he was not placed in a safety cell or properly supervised, and that he was not found for roughly an hour and a half. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's records list the manner of death as suicide. In 2026 the city agreed to pay $8.5 million to his family; the city declined to say whether any staff were disciplined.
Cause of death, as reported: Died by suicide (disputed; neglect alleged). The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner recorded a hanging, and the family's lawsuit says jail staff did not place him in a safety cell or properly supervise him despite his statements that people were trying to kill him, and did not find him for about an hour and a half.
Reported by: Los Angeles County Medical Examiner (medical examiner or coroner); his family's lawsuit (family or their lawyers).
Lawsuit: His family sued the City of Torrance and settled for $8.5 million in 2026, with the settlement going to his mother, wife and two sons.