Killing of Andy Lopez
PST) | |
Location | Moorland Avenue and West Robles Avenue, Santa Rosa, California, United States |
---|---|
Coordinates | 38°23′40″N 122°43′07″W / 38.394466°N 122.718555°W |
Participants | Erick Gelhaus (shooter) Andy Lopez (death) |
Deaths | Andy Lopez |
Charges | None filed[1] |
Litigation | Lawsuit against Sonoma County and Gelhaus settled for $3 million |
The fatal killing of Andy Lopez by
On November 4, 2013, the Lopez family filed a federal civil rights lawsuit at the
On July 7, 2014, District Attorney Jill Ravitch announced no charges would be filed against Gelhaus. On July 1, 2015, the
Backgrounds
Andy Lopez (June 2, 2000[2] – October 22, 2013) was a 13-year-old boy who attended Cook Middle School in Santa Rosa. He was raised in the Moorland Avenue neighborhood in southwest Santa Rosa. He transferred to Lewis Opportunity School from Cook Middle School one week prior to his death.[3]
Erick Gelhaus is a Sonoma County sheriff's deputy, and has worked with the agency for 24 years. He is also an Iraq War veteran. Gelhaus is a firearms instructor and is a contributing writer to gun publications. He began instructing in 2001 at Gunsite Academy, an Arizona-based company that teaches gun-handling, marksmanship, and law enforcement to "elite military personnel, law enforcement officers and free citizens of the U.S," and is listed as active as of 2022[4] He specialized in teaching pistol, carbine, shotgun and rifle lessons.[5] He accidentally shot himself in the leg in 1995 while on duty with the sheriff's office, reportedly while holstering a gun during an attempt at searching a teenager for weapons. In his 24 years in law enforcement, he had never shot a suspect until the shooting of Lopez.[6][7]
Shooting
According to Santa Rosa Police Lieutenant Paul Henry, two Sonoma County sheriff's deputies (Gelhaus and Michael Schemmel; Schemmel was driving the patrol car)[8] were patrolling the Moorland Avenue neighborhood when they spotted Andy Lopez approximately 25 yards (23 m) ahead carrying an airsoft replica of an AK-47 assault rifle[9] while he was walking on Moorland, just past the corner of West Robles Avenue. The rifle appeared to be a real weapon, since its orange tip had been previously broken off. As the sheriff's deputies approached the child from behind, Gelhaus radioed an observation of "Code 20, two units" at 3:13:58 p.m.[8] Schemmel activated the light bar and briefly sounded the siren as he parked the patrol vehicle, and Gelhaus exited the passenger's side, calling out to demand that Lopez drop the weapon. Lopez turned to his right, towards the deputies and the barrel allegedly began to ascend.[8]
At 3:14 p.m., Gelhaus fired eight shots at Lopez from his department-issued
The missing orange tip is a US legal requirement for all toy guns for import.[14] However, airsoft and pellet rifles are exempted from the marking requirements.[15] It is also a violation of California law to "openly display or expose any imitation firearm in a public place unless the entire exterior surface of the imitation firearm is painted with a specified color".[8] The 13 year old friend from whom Lopez had borrowed the replica later reported that he felt responsible "because he allowed Andy to borrow the gun even though the orange tip of the barrel was broken off making it look real, although he'd told his friend not to take it since it was broken."[8]
Investigation
On October 26, 2013, the
Investigators said Gelhaus feared for the safety of himself and his partner, and had to make an immediate decision to shoot when Lopez turned around and allegedly began raising the apparent assault weapon in their direction. The gun was later found to be an AK-47 replica air-soft pellet gun with the orange barrel tip marking broken off. Gelhaus was in a deputy sheriff's uniform and marked sheriff's patrol car; however, Lopez would not have seen the uniform or patrol car since the officers approached him from behind;[10]
In the autopsy, Lopez was found to have significant levels of THC in his blood, consistent with smoking marijuana 60 to 75 minutes previously; he was also found to have a joint in his pocket. 'A 13-year-old boy high on marijuana would likely have suffered "impaired judgment, slowed decision making and increased mental processing time, particularly when having to deal with performance of a sudden, unanticipated tasks, including decisions that needed to be quickly responded to.'"[18]
Gelhaus was cleared to return to duty on December 9, 2013, but was able to work at his desk and not on patrol. On July 7, 2014, District Attorney Jill Ravitch announced no charges would be filed against Gelhaus.[1] In August 2014, Gelhaus was allowed to return to patrolling the streets.[19]
The district attorney, Jill Ravich, referred the completed investigative report to the Sonoma County Grand Jury, but the civil Grand Jury declined to review it, citing lack of expertise.[20]
On July 1, 2015, the
Aftermath
Civil action
Arnoldo Casillas, the lawyer representing Lopez's family, said that the shooting was unconstitutional because it violated the
The civil action trial was initially scheduled to start in April 2016.
On June 25, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court denied Sonoma County's petition, clearing the way for the case against the Sonoma County sheriff's deputy to proceed toward a trial.[27] In December 2018, the lawsuit was settled for $3 million.[28]
Protests
A series of protests were organized and held following Lopez's death. The protests were mainly organized by immigrant, religious and community groups and activists.
Rallies were held statewide on November 9, 2013, in Santa Rosa,
On November 26, 2013, several people were detained during protests in Santa Rosa. A dozen demonstrators were cited for blocking traffic, and one demonstrator was arrested and booked for resisting arrest. There were 80 people attending that protest, consisting of local middle and high-school students, and several members of By Any Means Necessary (BAMN), a Bay Area-based civil rights group.[36]
On December 3, 2013, protesters targeted Ravitch at her re-election fundraiser.[37]
On December 9, 2013, Gelhaus was cleared to return to duty, which resulted in additional protests.[38]
A 31-year-old man was arrested for battery on a police officer for allegedly punching a police officer and hitting another officer with a picket sign during a protest at the Santa Rosa City Hall on December 10, 2013. Charges were dropped against him in May 2014.[39] A second person was arrested for obstructing a police officer and violating probation. Multiple protesters vandalized the front door of the Sonoma County Jail, breaking its glass.[40][41]
On February 17, 2014, protesters for Andy Lopez gathered at the
On July 12, 2014, more than 100 protesters held a rally at the Old Courthouse Square in Santa Rosa, demonstrating their disapproval with prosecutors' decision to not file charges against Erick Gelhaus. A small group of protesters marched onto northbound Highway 101, blocking traffic.[43]
On June 2, 2020, a memorial and march was held in Santa Rosa in Lopez’s honor, on what would have been his 20th birthday, and coinciding with the George Floyd protests.
Tributes
A memorial park was created for Lopez in December 2013, located near the site of his death.[44]
In March 2016, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors approved an additional $1.2 million of fund money for the park and a name for it. The park is named "Andy's Unity Park" and encompasses 4.22 acres. The park's estimated cost was $4 million, with $3 million for the construction.[45] The park was opened in June 2018 with a final cost of $3.7 million.[28] LandPaths, a Sonoma county non-profit, helped create Andy’s Unity Park Community Garden and maintains the park along with community involvement.[46]
See also
- List of killings by law enforcement officers in the United States, October 2013
- Police misconduct
- 2014 Ferguson unrest
- Shooting of Tamir Rice
- Shooting of Akai Gurley
- Shooting of John Crawford III
- Shooting of Ezell Ford
- Death of William Corey Jackson
- Shooting of Kuanchung Kao
- Death of Eric Garner
- Entertech shooting deaths
- Emmett Till
References
- ^ a b "Sonoma County D.A.: No criminal charges for deputy in Lopez shooting". 7 July 2014. Archived from the original on 8 July 2014. Retrieved 7 July 2014.
- ^ Press Democrat. October 29, 2013. Archivedfrom the original on October 31, 2013. Retrieved October 30, 2013.
- Press Democrat. Archived from the originalon November 1, 2013. Retrieved October 29, 2013.
- ^ "Erick Gelhaus". n.d. Retrieved 2022-07-26.
- ^ Joseph, Channing (October 28, 2013). "Deputy who shot Calif. teen is a gun instructor". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on 2013-11-01. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ a b Alexander, Kurtis (October 29, 2013). "Big rally in Santa Rosa over toy gun killing". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on October 30, 2013. Retrieved October 29, 2013.
- Huffington Post. Archivedfrom the original on November 1, 2013. Retrieved October 29, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e f g Law enforcement employee-involved fatal incident report (PDF) (Report). Sonoma County District Attorney's Office. 2014. Archived (PDF) from the original on 9 December 2014. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
- Huffington Post. Archivedfrom the original on October 28, 2013. Retrieved October 30, 2013.
- ^ a b "Report: Calif. boy shot before 2nd deputy left car". CBS News. October 30, 2013. Archived from the original on October 31, 2013. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
- ^ United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit. "Estate of Casillas v. City of Fresno". casetext.com. Retrieved 11 January 2023.
- ^ Winter, Michael (October 29, 2013). "Hundreds protest police killing of Calif. teen". USA Today. Archived from the original on October 30, 2013. Retrieved October 29, 2013.
- ^ Alexander, Kurtis (July 8, 2014). "Boy with toy gun said to be high when shot by cop". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on July 9, 2014. Retrieved July 9, 2014.
- ^ "15 C.F.R. Part 272—Marking of Toy, Look-Alike and Imitation Firearms". Electronic Code of Federal Regulations. 1 January 2014. Archived from the original on 2 July 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
§272.3 Approved markings.
The following markings are approved by the Secretary of Commerce:- A blaze orange (Fed-Std-595B 12199) or orange color brighter than that specified by the federal standard color number, solid plug permanently affixed to the muzzle end of the barrel as an integral part of the entire device and recessed no more than 6 millimeters from the muzzle end of the barrel.
- A blaze orange (Fed-Std-595B 12199) or orange color brighter than that specified by the Federal Standard color number, marking permanently affixed to the exterior surface of the barrel, covering the circumference of the barrel from the muzzle end for a depth of at least 6 millimeters.
- Construction of the device entirely of transparent or translucent materials which permits unmistakable observation of the device's complete contents.
- Coloration of the entire exterior surface of the device in white, bright red, bright orange, bright yellow, bright green, bright blue, bright pink, or bright purple, either singly or as the predominant color in combination with other colors in any pattern.
- ^ "15 C.F.R. Part 272—Marking of Toy, Look-Alike and Imitation Firearms". Electronic Code of Federal Regulations. 23 January 2013. Archived from the original on 2 July 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2016.
§272.1 Applicability.
This part applies to toy, look-alike, and imitation firearms ("devices") having the appearance, shape, and/or configuration of a firearm and produced or manufactured and entered into commerce on or after May 5, 1989, including devices modelled on real firearms manufactured, designed, and produced since 1898. This part does not apply to:- Non-firing collector replica antique firearms, which look authentic and may be a scale model but are not intended as toys modelled on real firearms designed, manufactured, and produced prior to 1898;
- Traditional B-B, paint-ball, or pellet-firing air guns that expel a projectile through the force of compressed air, compressed gas or mechanical spring action, or any combination thereof, as described in American Society for Testing and Materials standard F 589-85, Standard Consumer Safety Specification for Non-Powder Guns, June 28, 1985. This incorporation by reference was approved by the Director of the Federal Register in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. A copy is available for inspection in the Office of the Chief Counsel for NIST, National Institute of Standards and Technology, or at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For information on the availability of this material at NARA or go to: https://www.archives.gov/federal_register/code_of_federal_regulations/ibr_locations.html.
- Decorative, ornamental, and miniature objects having the appearance, shape and/or configuration of a firearm, including those intended to be displayed on a desk or worn on bracelets, necklaces, key chains, and so on, provided that the objects measure no more than thirty-eight (38) millimeters in height by seventy (70) millimeters in length, the length measurement excluding any gun stock length measurement.
- ^ a b "Andy Lopez fatal shooting by Santa Rosa police to be investigated by FBI". Associated Press. October 26, 2013. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved October 30, 2013.
- Press Democrat. Archivedfrom the original on October 28, 2013. Retrieved October 30, 2013.
- Press Democrat. Archivedfrom the original on August 2, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- Press Democrat, August 15, 2014.
- Press Democrat. Archivedfrom the original on August 3, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ^ Press Democrat, July 1, 2015.
- Press Democrat. Archivedfrom the original on November 3, 2013. Retrieved November 2, 2013.
- ^ "Andy Lopez Family Files Federal Lawsuit, Claiming Violation of Fourth Amendment". 4 November 2013. Archived from the original on 2013-11-07. Retrieved 2013-11-07.
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2014-01-23. Retrieved 2013-11-07.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - Press Democrat. Archivedfrom the original on April 13, 2016. Retrieved April 22, 2016.
- Press Democrat. Archivedfrom the original on April 24, 2016. Retrieved April 22, 2016.
- ^ url=https://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/8470096-181/us-supreme-court-denies-sonoma Archived 2018-10-15 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b "Sonoma County to pay $3 million to settle lawsuit over Andy Lopez shooting". 18 December 2018. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 27 March 2019.
- Press Democrat. Archivedfrom the original on November 11, 2013. Retrieved November 2, 2013.
- ^ "News Fix Archives | KQED News". Archived from the original on 2013-10-31. Retrieved 2013-10-30.
- Press Democrat. Archivedfrom the original on November 1, 2013. Retrieved October 29, 2013.
- Press Democrat. Archivedfrom the original on October 31, 2013. Retrieved October 29, 2013.
- Press Democrat. November 5, 2013. Retrieved November 5, 2013.
- ^ "Protesters vow independent Andy Lopez investigation". 5 November 2013. Archived from the original on 8 November 2013. Retrieved 6 November 2013.
- ^ "Multiple Bay Area Protests Saturday Over Andy Lopez Shooting". CBS News. November 8, 2013. Archived from the original on November 9, 2013. Retrieved November 8, 2013.
- Press Democrat. Archivedfrom the original on November 29, 2013. Retrieved November 26, 2013.
- ^ "District Attorney Jill Ravitch defends Andy Lopez inquiry amid pair of protests". 4 December 2013. Archived from the original on 17 December 2013. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
- ^ "California Deputy Who Shot Teen Returning to Duty - ABC News". ABC News. Archived from the original on 2013-12-17. Retrieved 2020-06-28.
- Press Democrat, May 9, 2014.
- Press Democrat. Archivedfrom the original on December 13, 2013. Retrieved December 11, 2013.
- Press Democrat. December 10, 2013. Archivedfrom the original on December 13, 2013. Retrieved December 10, 2013.
- ^ Security guard says he was fired over Lopez t-shirt flap Archived 2014-07-29 at the Wayback Machine, KTVU, March 2, 2014.
- ^ Protesters Demanding Justice For Slain 13-Year-Old Andy Lopez Block Hwy 101, Santa Rosa Archived 2014-08-08 at the Wayback Machine, CBS News, July 12, 2014.
- ^ "Supervisors Study Turning Park into Memorial for Andy Lopez, Teen Killed Carrying Replica Rifle". 3 December 2013. Archived from the original on 2013-12-17. Retrieved 2013-12-17.
- ^ "Sonoma Supervisors give name, funding boost to park in memory of Andy Lopez". KTVU. March 16, 2016. Archived from the original on March 18, 2016. Retrieved March 16, 2016.
- ^ "Andy's Unity Park Community Garden". Archived from the original on 2020-08-03. Retrieved 2020-06-01.
External links
- Law enforcement employee-involved fatal incident report (PDF) (Report). Sonoma County District Attorney's Office. 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 December 2014. Retrieved 29 January 2015.