Family sues city after police killed their son

SANTA CLARA >> Underneath the red, purple and yellow poncho from Colombia bearing the name of her slain son, Amanda Sommers’ shoulders trembled. The mother of Jesús A. Geney, a 24-year-old man killed by Santa Clara police while suffering a mental breakdown, stood in front of Santa Clara City Hall on Saturday to announce her family is suing the city.

“I want justice for my son. I don’t want it to happen to another family,” Sommers said tearfully. “I don’t have a life now. My life is over now. My son was everything to me.”

The deadly encounter, still under investigation by the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office, unfolded March 9 after Santa Clara police were called to the family home four times. Geney, a college student studying to be a plastic surgeon, had suffered a breakdown after exhibiting disturbing behavior for two months.

On Saturday, Santa Clara police Lt. Dan Moreno said the majority of police officers receive training to deal with mentally ill people. “Police officers are trying to do the right thing every day,” Moreno said. “This was an unfortunate, tragic situation.”

According to the Sommers family, Geney had been paranoid about people following him, staying up late at night and “saying strange things.”

Hours before he was killed, Geney had barricaded himself inside a bedroom in the family’s Deborah Drive home. He’d cut himself on the chest and was threatening to do more harm.

“This day, something just snapped in his brain,” Richard Sommers, his stepfather, said outside City Hall. “He wasn’t the same person. It was like something entered his body.”

Richard Sommers left for work that day and got a call from his wife saying Geney was asking to be fed from a window. Then, Sommers said, he threatened to hurt himself again. Fearing for Geney’s life, the family called the police for help. Officers had previously told the worried parents to “leave him alone,” and that “he’ll be fine,” Sommers said. Other officers advised the family to leave and go to a hotel.

But during the fourth and final police visit, Geney fled the house and ran to nearby railroad tracks. Police followed him and the family didn’t hear anything for 45 minutes.

“I thought they took him to the hospital,” Amanda Sommers said. “I never thought they killed my Jesús — because I called them for help. I feel like it’s my fault.”

Richard Sommers said neighbors reported hearing six gunshots, but said an autopsy revealed his stepson was shot four times. Officer Colin Stewart was placed on an administrative leave and the District Attorney’s Office launched an investigation.

Moreno said it’s unclear if Stewart, who is back on the job, had undergone training on dealing with the mentally ill.

City spokeswoman Jennifer Yamaguma said the city can’t comment on pending litigation. Police officials previously told this news organization that Geney lunged forward and they tried to subdue him with a Taser. His stepdad says there were no marks on his body.

Geney, according to his family, was unarmed and nearly naked — wearing only a pair of swim trunks.

“The shooting was completely unjustified,” said Fulvio Cajina, the family’s attorney, on Saturday. “There was absolutely no need to use force, especially because they’d been with him all day and knew he suffered a psychological episode.”

According to Cajina, the lawsuit was filed Saturday in federal court and names the city and officer Stewart.

Families of other victims killed by law enforcement offered support to Geney’s family and friends. They called for justice for Jesús — releasing more than a dozen balloons into the air — and stronger punishment for cops who kill unarmed people.

“The only way to stop the killings is to hold police accountable for the crimes they commit,” said Cephus X. Johnson, the uncle of Oscar Grant, an unarmed black man killed by BART police Officer Johannes Mehserle in 2009. “If Mehserle did 12 years,” instead of a lesser sentence, “that would resonate.”

Deana Abello, whose husband, James “Nate” Greer, died in the custody of Hayward police in 2014, said it starts with repealing portions of the Peace Officers Bill of Rights, which provides certain protections during investigations.

“It’s paralyzing to know it happens so much,” Abello said. “It’s injustice that needs to be stopped.”