Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Division
A Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Division (LASD) deputy is dealing with two felony counts for persevering with to fireplace on a suicidal man who had already been shot by police and was mendacity on the bottom, District Legal professional George Gascón introduced Thursday.
Remin Pineda, who additionally occurred to show 38 on Thursday, stands charged with assault with a semiautomatic firearm and assault beneath shade of authority for the on-duty capturing dying of 34-year-old David Ordaz Jr. final yr.
The case prompted nationwide headlines, in addition to a federal civil rights lawsuit by the Ordaz household, which accused Pineda and three different deputies of utilizing “pointless and deadly drive to unjustifiably kill” the daddy of three on March 14, 2021.
His household mentioned Ordaz, who had been in bother with the police earlier than, had psychological well being points and wished to commit “suicide by cop” that day. Certainly one of Ordaz’s sisters referred to as 911 to ask for assist, telling the dispatcher that Ordaz was saying he wished to die, and requested steering on “what I can do to assist [him].”
When deputies arrived, they discovered Ordaz sitting in a automotive exterior the household house, reportedly beneath the affect of methamphetamine. The officers ordered Ordaz out of the automobile, and he emerged holding a 12-inch kitchen knife “whereas telling the deputies to shoot him,” based on an incident abstract the LASD launched following Ordaz’s dying.
David Ordaz.
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Division
“Deputies requested further Sheriff’s personnel to reply, particularly personnel geared up with much less deadly weapons and a Psychological Analysis Crew (MET),” the abstract said. “Members of the MET have been responding however had not arrived on the time of the capturing. Whereas persevering with to talk with Ordaz and ordering him to drop the knife, Ordaz moved nearer to deputies, and stun bag rounds have been fired at Ordaz.”
Bodycam video exhibits Ordaz stepping again and turning after being hit with the non-lethal rounds, however when he appeared to shortly flip again towards the deputies, they opened hearth. The officers shot him “a number of occasions,” based on Gascón’s workplace, immobilizing Ordaz, who was holding his shoulder.
“After Ordaz fell to the bottom, had dropped the knife and laid along with his again dealing with the deputies, Pineda is accused of constant to fireplace his handgun,” Gascón’s assertion says. (The Ordaz household’s lawsuit claims the “killing shot” punctured Ordaz’s chest.)
Ordaz was taken to a neighborhood hospital, the place he was pronounced useless. Sheriff Alex Villaneuva later mentioned he had “grave considerations” over the capturing, and Pineda was suspended.
Former police officer and College of South Carolina regulation professor Seth Stoughton instructed the Los Angeles Instances final August that the incident certainly appeared extreme.
“He was absolutely on the bottom,” Stoughton mentioned. “The final shot has no justification in any respect.”
The opposite three officers, who haven't been charged with any crime, have been recognized by authorities as Deputy Edwin Navarrete, Deputy Jaime Romero, and Deputy Nathaniel Trujillo.
Ordaz, who's an novice boxer, goes by the nicknames “Rembo” and “Pinoy Energy” within the ring, based on a 2017 interview he gave to a company that sanctions fights between law enforcement officials, firefighters, and different first responders. Ordaz mentioned he was an ex-Marine, loved driving his 2011 Honda Shadow motorbike and consuming carne asada “tremendous fries,” and named Dumb & Dumber as his favourite film.
“Illegal and extreme drive by the hands of police erodes the general public belief and results in additional divisions between regulation enforcement and the communities they serve,” Gascón mentioned in Thursday’s announcement, including that the case stays beneath investigation. “It's crucial that we maintain regulation enforcement accountable once they act unlawfully. This tragic killing of Mr. Ordaz within the presence of his circle of relatives has prompted great hurt that may reverberate for years to return.”
Ordaz, who doesn't have a lawyer listed in courtroom data, was unable to be reached for touch upon Thursday. His arraignment has not but been scheduled.