REDWOOD CITY – San Mateo County’s district legal professional stated his workplace is not going to file prison costs towards 5 Redwood Metropolis law enforcement officials who shot and killed an armed man final fall.
In a 17-page report launched Tuesday, District Legal professional Steve Wagstaffe stated the officers have been justified in utilizing deadly power towards 36-year-old San Carlos resident Abran Gutierrez after he held his girlfriend and two younger kids hostage at gunpoint.
“This was a dynamic, traumatic occasion the place toddlers and infants, essentially the most weak amongst us, have been positioned in direct risk of nice bodily hurt or demise by the reckless and harmful acts of Mr. Gutierrez,” Wagstaffe stated. “I acknowledge that every officer on scene that day was required to make a collection of speedy selections as they formulated evolving methods on how finest to make sure that they and harmless civilians all made it safely house that day.”
The encounter unfolded round 3 p.m. on Nov. 15 close to the intersection of Beech Avenue and El Camino Actual. Wagstaffe stated Officer Luke Shoats arrived to seek out two vehicles – a Toyota Camry and a Toyota Prius – parked on the curb and three to 4 individuals standing close by.
Gutierrez’s girlfriend instructed Shoats the couple had gotten into an argument whereas driving and that he had tried to take her cellphone and push her again into the Camry after she pulled over. The Prius belonged to a buddy of the girlfriend, who pulled over to assist after she noticed the couple on the facet of the street, Wagstaffe stated.
The buddy, alongside together with her passenger, referred to as 911 and was transferring the kids from the Camry to the Prius.
Gutierrez, in response to his girlfriend and members of the family, had been listening to voices, experiencing paranoia and speaking to individuals who weren't current within the two months main as much as the confrontation, Wagstaffe stated. The girlfriend additionally reported that the argument that preceded the capturing was associated to Gutierrez’s paranoia.
When Shoats went to detain Gutierrez, he pulled a handgun from his waistband and pointed it on the officer, Wagstaffe stated. Gutierrez then received into the backseat of the Prius, which at that time was occupied by his girlfriend and two of her kids.
Wagstaffe stated Shoats ordered Gutierrez to get out of the automotive, however he as an alternative pointed the gun at his girlfriend and the kids and instructed the officer he would “smoke her” if he approached.
As different officers arrived on the scene, Shoats moved his patrol automobile and took up a special place to keep away from being caught in any potential crossfire. Shoats and one other officer, William Wolfe, additionally retrieved their service rifles and watched as Gutierrez continued to carry his girlfriend and the kids at gunpoint, Wagstaffe stated.
“Officer Shoats seen that Mr. Gutierrez was holding the kids in such a method as to create a protect to guard himself,” Wagstaffe stated. “Officers Shoats and Wolfe agreed that if Mr. Gutierrez moved into an open area within the rear passenger seat space of the Prius that they have been going to take a shot to stop any additional harm or demise.”
At one level, the girlfriend and one of many kids pulled away from him and Shoats and Wolfe fired one shot every, Wagstaffe stated, including that Shoats fired a second shot after Gutierrez received out of the automotive and appeared to crouch behind one of many open rear doorways.
Wagstaffe stated three different officers – Nicholas Muniz, Victor Figueroa and Jose Montoya – additionally fired a complete of 4 photographs at Gutierrez after he left the Prius with the gun nonetheless in his hand. An post-mortem later revealed Gutierrez was struck 5 instances.
“In circumstances similar to this, I'm required to guage using deadly power with the knowledge gathered from such a traumatic encounter and from the angle of an affordable officer,” Wagstaffe stated. “I discover that officers Shoats, Wolfe, Muniz, Figueroa and Montoya acted moderately and justifiably of their use of deadly power to guard the lives” of the victims “in addition to their very own lives and people of civilians who occurred to be current on a busy thoroughfare in the midst of the day.”
Within the report, Wagstaffe additionally famous that every of the officers “did contemplate and fairly reject using much less deadly choices towards Mr. Gutierrez,” together with stun weapons and batons.