NEW YORK (Court TV) — The parents of the West African immigrant shot 41 times by four NYPD officers sued Tuesday the city of New York for $81 million.

Amadou Diallo's mother, Kadiatou, and his father, Saikou, are asking for $1 million for each of the 41 bullets fired February 4, 1999 at their son. Nineteen of the 41 shots struck the unarmed Diallo, who was standing in the vestibule of his Bronx apartment. Diallo's parents are also seeking $40 million for pain and suffering.

Also named in the suit are Sean Carroll, Edward McMellon, Kenneth Boss and Richard Murphy, the four officers who were acquitted last February of all charges in the shooting.

The officers, all of whom were members of New York's elite Street Crimes Unit, claimed that the shooting was an accident, not a murder. The four testified that the lighting around the vestibule was dim and they thought Diallo was reaching for a gun when they opened fire. Carroll and McMellon fired 16 times each; Boss fired five times, Murphy four.

Diallo's parents allege the officers "acted in a reckless, wanton and grossly negligent manner and in complete disregard for the rights and safety" of their son when they approached him "without any lawful justification" and fired 41 times. The defendants "intentionally, wantonly, recklessly and maliciously" shot at him "with the intent to cause injury or death," according to the complaint, obtained by Court TV.

Allegedly, the city was "negligent in the training and supervision" of the officers, who "acted with malicious and wanton disregard of the constitutional rights" of Diallo.

Furthermore, the officers allegedly were "acting pursuant to a policy, custom and practice of the New York City Police Department which encouraged officers of the Street Crime Unit to aggressively stop individuals without regard to their Constitutional rights..."

The complaint accuses the NYPD of implementing a policy within the Street Crimes Unit of racial profiling that involved the stopping and frisking of African-American males.

Diallo was allegedly stopped "for no other reason but that he was black."

The complaint alleges that the "sudden and drastic" growth of the Street Crimes Unit, from 120 to 380 officers in 1997, resulted in "grossly inadequate training" for new recruits and left them "dangerously unsupervised."

"The grossly inadequate training received by the defendants...and the lack of proper and adequate supervision, was a contributing cause of the defendants attempting to stop the decedent, Amadou Bailo Diallo, and thereafter shoot and kill him."

The parents are asking for $20 million for each of six causes of action, but they would not be able to collect $20 million for each and every one; they offer numerous theories of wrongful death, but if any prove successful, they would receive only $20 million. Essentially, the plaintiffs are asking for $20 million for wrongful death, another $20 million for pain and suffering and $41 million in punitive damages.

Copyright© 2000 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.