Mario Gonzalez.Photo: Alameda Police Department/ AP/Shutterstock
Police body camera footage of the interaction between Mario Gonzalez, 26, and the Alameda Police Department was released Tuesday.
The incident occurred on April 19 at about 10:45 a.m. when officers responded to a small park area after a report of a man loitering and breaking the security tags off alcohol bottles, theNew York Timesreports.
In a press release last week, the Alameda Police Department said “there was a scuffle as officers attempted to place his hands behind his back.”
The police department said: “Officers did not use any weapons during the scuffle with Mr. Gonzalez.”
According toKRON4, the video shows officers talking to Gonzalez before attempting to place his arms behind his back and handcuff him.
After a struggle he falls to the ground.
Gonzalez is handcuffed and pinned to the ground for about five minutes before he becomes unresponsive, theTimesreports.
After officers attempted first aid, he was taken to a hospital where he died,NBC Bay Areareports.
Police said Gonzalez’s cause of death remains unknown pending autopsy results.
“The cause of Mr. Gonzalez’s medical emergency is also not yet known,” police said in the statement.
Brother Calls Officers' Actions ‘Unnecessary and Unprofessional’
Gonzalez’s family spoke out at a press conference on Tuesday about his death.
“Everything we saw in that video was unnecessary and unprofessional,” said Gonzalez’s brother Gerardo Gonzalez, NBC Bay Area reports. “The footage shows officers on top of Mario while he was face down on the ground. They had their weight on his head and his back.”
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“[They’re] lying to me, they say my son, [he’s] fighting with the officers,” Gonzalez’s mother Edith Gonzalez said, according to NBC Bay Area. “I say, ‘No, come on! You guys made a mistake!'”
The three officers have been placed on paid administrative leave.
In a press release, the City of Alameda said the Alameda County Sheriff’s Department and Alameda County District Attorney’s Office are conducting a criminal investigation into the death. An independent outside investigation is also being conducted, according to the release.
“The City is committed to full transparency and accountability in the tragic death of Mario Gonzalez,” the city said in a statement. “Our heartfelt condolences go out to his loved ones. This outside investigation will provide an independent analysis into what may have occurred the day Mr. Gonzalez tragically lost his life.”
source: people.com
