Police face suits following shootings in 2020
After a year when deep resentment over police tactics boiled over like never before, a Montebello law firm has challenged the Kern County Sheriff’s Office and Bakersfield Police Department over multiple officer-involved shootings.
Speaking in front of Kern County Superior Court in Bakersfield on Friday, lawyers representing the families of four individuals who were shot by police last year demanded justice for their clients and claimed local law enforcement agencies were not following laws requiring the release of certain evidence.
“They are treating our people here in Kern County as second-class citizens. We are not going to sit back and allow that to happen,” said attorney Humberto Guizar, part of Justice X, which describes itself as a coalition of Black and brown lawyers fighting against systemic inequality. “We’re not going to allow the people of color to be killed in disproportionate numbers the way they are killing them.”
Representing Graciano Ceballos, Elicio Meraz, Israel Lucas
and Daniel David Reyes, Justice X claimed KCSO and BPD were trying to cover up the shootings by withholding certain information, like the identity of the involved officers.
“They want to hide behind their shield, but under the law there is no shield,” said attorney Stephen King. “A badge is not a shield to the Constitution.”
In some cases, the identities of the involved officers have been released. Police have also released some information on all incidents and are either in the process of reviewing the incidents or have already determined that officers acted within department policy.
A KCSO spokeswoman said the department does not comment on pending litigation. A BPD spokesman referred questions to the city attorney and re-sent press releases related to the Meraz case. In one of the press releases, which was first published Dec. 29, BPD Chief Greg Terry said the public had a legitimate interest in obtaining information about police shootings.
“The Bakersfield Police Department is committed to making that information available,” he said in a statement at the time. “We will release the body worn camera footage of officers in critical incidents as soon as it is possible to do so without compromising an investigation. This is our commitment to accountability and professionalism.”
The Meraz shooting occurred Nov. 30 on Truxtun Avenue near downtown Bakersfield. According to the BPD news release, officers were responding to a report someone had stolen a construction loader being used for roadwork. By the time officers arrived, the suspect had abandoned the vehicle and was circling the area in a red Nissan truck.
Meraz was unarmed at the time of the shooting, but possessed a “dark colored phone charging pack” officers mistook for a weapon. The news release says he made suicidal statements. He survived his injuries, and was booked into Kern County Jail upon his recovery.
A claim, which will likely turn into a lawsuit, has been filed against BPD over the incident.
The year 2020 saw a notably high number of police shootings. The Kern County District Attorney’s Office was sent 18 to review. The three cases involving KCSO reveal the wide range of situations in which officers find themselves.
Lucas was a homeless man who police say refused to leave a Dollar Store in Mojave on March 21. According to KCSO, Lucas threw a deputy into a glass wall, punched a deputy in the face and hit a deputy with the deputy’s baton when they tried to arrest him. Lucas was shot and killed after the alleged retaliation. A lawsuit has been filed in Kern County Superior Court.
With Ceballos, plaintiffs say in court documents he was driving around his community on April 18, upset over personal issues. He fired a gun into the air and drove away from the scene when deputies arrived. He tossed his gun from the window, the documents say, and a pursuit lasted for at least 30 minutes. Ceballos “took one step” out of the vehicle before being shot and killed by deputies, plaintiffs allege.
In a KCSO news release following the incident, the department said someone from Ceballos’ vehicle fired shots at deputies during the pursuit.
A second lawsuit has been filed in Kern County Superior Court.
KCSO has released body cam footage of the fatal shooting of Reyes, 27, which occurred on Nov. 10 in Oildale. In a video review of the event, KCSO said Reyes first ran away before charging at a deputy after being approached following a report that a suspicious person was banging on the door of a residence. KCSO claims Reyes was armed with a knife.
Reyes’ family says Reyes was outside simply to check his mail.
“If you knew Daniel you knew that he had his ups and downs, but in the last year he was doing amazing. He was excited for life. He had his first actual job, his first actual car that he purchased with his own money. He got custody of his daughter, which he has two daughters and one son,” said his sister, Maribel Bernal-Cardenas. “He was just excited for life. I don’t understand why they killed my brother and I don’t think I ever will.”
They hope their claim against the county, will help bring answers.
“He was killed in the prime of his life,” said Reyes’ grandmother Feliz Gomez. “I have his daughter with me, and she talks about her dad all the time, and I think justice needs to be served.”