Disturbing photo shows California police officer smiling while kneeling on 66-year-old woman who died

Bodycam footage shows a California officer grinning and kneeling on an elderly woman who lay passed out on the road before she died at a hospital. The incident is from November 17, 2024, and details have now been revealed in a lawsuit. Nyota Koya, 66, was pulled out of her car in a parking lot by Matthew Sterling, who later knelt on her. The disturbing footage shows him smiling as he does so. The lawsuit has been filed by her daughter, Nathifa Wright, against the city of Sacramento, the Sacramento Police Department, Sterling and police chief Katherine Lester.

Sterling was responding to a trespassing report and found Koya stranded in her car. He offered to take her to the shelter and have her car towed. A second officer who was with Sterling left the scene for some time. Koya was still in the car after two hours and Sterling asked her to hurry. Koya tells him, "I’m 66, baby. I’ve got to get this together. I can’t even hardly put on my shoes."

She also tells him that her "ankles are swollen. My car ain’t working. My phone ain’t working. And you’re sitting up there, talking mess to me, and knocking on the side of the [car]. No, you know what? It’s not alright. It’s jacked."

Sterling tells her she has five minutes; otherwise, she will be "going to jail. So, at 12:27, we’ll be going to jail." Koya gets angry and tells the officer, "This right here is straight bulls**t, and I'm sick of it. I've been through this s**t so god damn long, I'm tired of it."

She then closes the door before Sterling grabs it open and pulls her out. She starts screaming and says, "You ain't no police! You b**ch a** motherf***er! Hell no! Let me f**king go! Let me go!" Bodycam footage shows her face down on the road with his knee on her. The lawsuit carries screenshots of this moment where Sterling can be seen sporting a big smile.

Koya was moved to the top of the car and became unconscious. She was rushed to the hospital after paramedics failed to find a pulse. She died at the Mercy San Juan Medical Center a week later. Nathifa is seeking damages for 17 claims, including excessive force and wrongful death.