Posted on 02/10/2014 6:34:07 AM PST by Uncle Chip
The Santa Rosa Police Department has completed its investigation of the Oct. 22 shooting of 13-year-old Andy Lopez by Sonoma County Sheriff’s Deputy Erick Gelhaus....
Sonoma County District Attorney Jill Ravitch acknowledged the receipt of the report late this afternoon at the same time Santa Rosa police announced the investigation was completed....
Ravitch said her office will determine whether or not violations of criminal law are believed to have occurred, and if any individuals who are believed to have violated criminal law should be prosecuted.
She also said her office will provide a summary and recommendation to the Sonoma County Grand Jury and present the grand jury with investigative information upon request....
Lopez was carrying an airsoft BB rifle that resembled an AK-47 rifle while he was walking on Moorland Avenue near West Robles Avenue on Oct. 22.
Gelhaus, 48, who was in a sheriff’s patrol car with another as-yet-unidentified deputy, told Santa Rosa police he thought the rifle was real and ordered Lopez to drop it.
Gelhaus fired eight shots, seven of which struck Lopez, who died at the scene. According to Santa Rosa police, Gelhaus said he thought his and the other deputy’s life were in danger when the barrel of the rifle rose as Lopez turned toward him.
There have been at least 10 protest marches since the fatal shooting, and Lopez’s family has filed a civil rights violation and wrongful death complaint in federal court against the sheriff’s office and Sonoma County.
The complaint in part alleges the county negligently allowed Gelhaus to have contact with the public when it knew he suffered from vision problems and that the 24-year veteran had used excessive force and unjustifiably drew and misfired his firearm in the past.
(Excerpt) Read more at sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com ...
The more attention this case gets, the better chance of a fair hearing. Definitely needs to be taken away from this DA... AND her opponent too!
Forensics document that he shot him four times while he lay prostrate on the ground:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/3096267/posts
And now he is back on the police force loaded for more —
Most airsoft guns are designed to be replicas. They look similar to a real gun and are just as heavy. They are subject to specific laws that apply to replicas. In some states it is illegal to display them in a public place, and the orange tip is not to be altered.
And if you are an LEO with a brain then you know that and you know not to overreact when you see what appears to be an AK47 in the hands of a law abiding citizen.
Needless to say Andy Lopez was legally carrying his toy when shot.
Unbelievable. :-(
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