The Alameda Police Department said in its first news release that officers attempted to detain the man, and a physical altercation ensued. Richard Winton is an investigative crime writer for the Los Angeles Times and part of the team that won the Pulitzer Prize for public service in 2011. They began CPR and called for medical assistance. After Oakland man dies in custody, Alameda looks at possible changes in policing appreciated. The Associated Press contributed to this report. During the encounter, Gonzalez remained in a prone position with pressure applied to his posterior torso and legs, the report said. Local residents called 911 on Gonzalez after he seemed dazed and intoxicated, but not threatening or violent, in a public park. The Alameda County coroners office is conducting an autopsy. "Once they're controlling him, as we learned from the Floyd trial with all those medical experts, this position or compression is deadly," said Geoffrey Alpert, a professor of criminology at the University of South Carolina and an expert on police use of force. Wife of popular Wild 94.9 radio host JV says new information suggests he will not be coming back, Bay Area federal judge orders extradition of woman suspected of killing MSU student in hit-and-run, San Jose: Home raided as part of explosives and narcotics investigation, Dear Abby: My wife said she doesn't like it, but it's part of my life. Mario Gonzalez Died Of 'Restraint Asphyxiation' By Police, New Autopsy Finds An independent autopsy confirmed what the Latino fathers family had declared: Police in "They wanted to keep him from tripping, so they killed him instead? The Alameda County district attorney will not file criminal charges against three police officers who restrained a Northern California man who died in their custody last year. George Kelly is a breaking news reporter for the Bay Area News Group's East Bay Times and Mercury News. AP Gonzalez, a 26-year-old Oakland man, stopped breathing after several Alameda police officers held him face-down on the ground for roughly five minutes. "There was no reason to detain him, let alone kill him. In their initial public statements, Alameda police described Gonzalezs death as a medical emergency. Grieving family members invoked George Floyd, the Minneapolis man whose murder by a former police officer set off a national reckoning over police violence against people of color. Since joining The Times in 2020, Seidman has served on the breaking news and utility desks, wheres she written about Indigenous communities, wildfires threatening giant trees and fishing the L.A. River. His family said officers unnecessarily escalated what should have been a minor, peaceful encounter with the unarmed man. Attorneys for the family of Mario Gonzalez, a Latino man who died after an Alameda officer put a knee on his back and neck for more than four minutes, are asking the Gonzalez's life began to unravel during the pandemic. "Theres nothing in the report that any of the techniques used by the officers were unreasonable or excessive. Family members said Gonzalez had no known health conditions and have previously contended that he did not die from medical complications. IRS delays tax deadline for Bay Area, but California hasn't followed: What should you do? Its peer-reviewed. Gonzalez was still resisting with his entire body, including his legs, even after being handcuffed, according to the report. But he urged people to wait for the results of a full investigation. The police killed my brother, in the same manner they killed George Floyd, his brother Gerardo Gonzalez told reporters Tuesday. Then the cops put Marios hands behind his back and pinned him facedown. , released Wednesday, said that Gonzalez died on April 19, 2021, from restraint asphyxiation, according to forensic pathologist Bennet Omalu. HuffPost's top politics stories, straight to your inbox. His death was ruled a homicide but also linked to health and drug use, Oakland leaders are scrambling to tackle violence and attract police officers. Hes respectful, all the time, Marios mother, Edith Arenales, said. Gonzalez, 26, died on April 19, 2021, following an encounter with three Alameda police officers who responded to a call that a person was acting strangely and talking to himself, according to a March 30 report from the Alameda County District Attorneys office. 2023 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. He wasnt hurting anyone and he was clearly confused. No officers were charged. While we wait for the District Attorneys office to make their decision and with the knowledge of the coroners report, the city will work diligently towards completing its ongoing independent investigation and take appropriate action, Joshi said in the statement. An altercation occurred, an officer was seen pinning a man for at least four minutes, and soon Mario Gonzalez was dead. Michael Haddad, an attorney representing Gonzalez and his young son, who is also named Mario, said he didnt need an autopsy to deduce that Gonzalezs death was a homicide, or that the police restraint was a factor. Crime and Public Safety | In Alameda County, the sheriff also oversees the coroner's office. 2021 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. Nor was there a time when they were pressing down hard enough on his body to cause him not to breathe.". Gonzalez's death came amid ongoing tensions between police and communities they're sworn to protect, following the police killing of George Floyd less than one year earlier. Please dont do it, Gonzalez says at one point, and then, Im sorry, followed by screams and groans. He also holds a AA degree in journalism from Contra Costa College (San Pablo). Gonzalezs death resulted from the toxic effects of methamphetamine, combined with the physiological stress of restraint by officers and other underlying conditions, according to the Alameda County coroner. Haddad said his firm has hired a doctor to conduct a second autopsy, the results of which have not yet been finalized. The sheriffs office is also convening a cause and manner of death committee to review the case before releasing any findings, sheriff spokesman Sgt. But family members and civil rights activists stressed that he was not suspected of a serious crime and said there was no need to arrest him. Ray Kelly said. The case has sparked outrage in the community. He stopped breathing in a park at the end of a cul-de-sac of well-kept homes with manicured gardens. By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. A previous Alameda County Sheriffs Office coroners autopsy differed on the cause of death, saying Gonzalez died of a heart attack caused by the stress of the encounter. The methamphetamine detected in his blood combined with his enlarged and dilated heart could have together resulted in fatal cardiac arrhythmia, the report continued. Paramedics rushed him to Alameda Hospital, where he arrived in cardiac arrest, not breathing, with no pulse, according to the report. In an autopsy report released Friday, chief forensic pathologist Vivian Snyder categorized Gonzalezs death as a homicide, while citing other factors, including Crime and Public Safety | His mother is speaking up because other Latinos are dying, Arenales suit says officers put significant weight on his back, shoulders, neck, and legs for over five minutes in violation of generally accepted law enforcement standards, while Mr. Gonzalez struggled to breathe.. Part of HuffPost Politics. The family of an unarmed 26-year-old San Francisco Bay Area man is struggling to understand how a minor confrontation with police led to his death on the same day a jury in Minneapolis began considering similar circumstances in the George Floyd case. In this case, one officer recognized the danger, asking shortly before Gonzalez stopped breathing if they should roll him on his side. Most Californians can put off filing taxes until Oct. 16 but should they? ", "It was the toxic level of drugs not the actions of the officers," Berry Wilkinson said in an interview. By clicking Sign Up, I confirmthat I have read and agreeto the Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. Police said Gonzalez died later at the hospital, but the video shows Gonzalez stopped breathing on site and one officer declaring no pulse as officers began CPR. Nearly eight months after 26-year-old Mario Gonzalez died at the hands of police in Alameda, California, the county coroners office released a report ruling the Latino fathers death a homicide. The officers determine that he is resisting, then push him to the ground, according to the video. Colorado cop shot and killed unarmed man at point-blank range after struggle outside middle school, video shows ", Alameda police officers try to revive Mario Gonzalez of Oakland after police restrained him, prone on the ground. A man died after being restrained by police in California. "The medical emergency that they're talking about was induced by three officers on his back. Officers in Alameda, California, arrived April 19 to check out neighbors' reports that Mario Gonzalez was acting strangely in a park and appeared to be breaking the security tags off of alcohol bottles he had in two drugstore baskets. The long-awaited autopsy found morbid obesity and alcoholism were also contributing factors in Gonzalez's April 19 death. Fugitive in $18 million COVID fraud scheme extradited to U.S. Updated to include drought zones while tracking water shortage status of your area, plus reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts. Toxicology exams found methamphetamine and amphetamine in Gonzalezs body, the effects of which were aggravated by the stress of his altercation with the officers, the autopsy report said. Then officers can be seen putting Gonzalezs hands behind his back and pinning him facedown. In April, police called the incident a scuffle followed by a. after an outcry from Gonzalezs family showed officers approaching Gonzalez, alone in a park with some bottles of alcohol, and Gonzalez calmly speaking with officers for nearly nine minutes. The epic California snowpack is inching toward record levels, Massive Tahoe avalanche 'engulfed' 3-story apartment building, city officials hired Louise Renne of the Renne Public Law Group in San Francisco, Opinion: The our city is broken and Im not gonna take it anymore screed, San Francisco is at its most unaffordable point in at least a decade, S.F. He was anxious and was prescribed medications to help. Gonzalezs cause of death is not yet known. April 19, 2021. All four employees have now been interviewed by both the sheriff's and district attorney's investigators, the city said. Soon after a second officer, James Fisher, confirmed with a local drugstore that the alcohol Gonzalez had with him hadnt been stolen from there, both officers attempted to detain Gonzalez before pinning him to the ground and handcuffing his hands behind his back, while a third officer, Cameron Leahy, joined them. But theyve hit a snag, Randall Emmett, Ambyr Childers settle domestic violence restraining order dispute, Review: A reimagined Secret Garden fails to flower anew at the Ahmanson Theatre, A $150,000 executive protection dog? In this image taken from Alameda Police Department body-camera video, officers pin Mario Gonzalez to the ground during an arrest on April 19, 2021, in Alameda, Calif. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Before and after photos from space show storms effect on California reservoirs, Dramatic before and after photos from space show epic snow blanketing SoCal mountains, The chance of a lifetime: Five friends ski the tallest mountain in Los Angeles, Best coffee city in the world? Gonzalez liked to get away from their neighborhood in east Oakland, where gang shootings, robberies and murders are commonplace, and go to nearby Alameda, a city on an island with beautiful homes, tree-lined streets and many parks, his brother said. Gonzalez weighed about 250 pounds (113 kilograms), and police said he appeared to be under the influence. Interim Police Chief Randy Fenn told KTVU-TV said the video was "troubling" and offered his condolences to Gonzalez's family. The officers roll Gonzalez over and perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation, but he was later pronounced dead at a hospital. All three remain on paid leave. Mario Gonzalez Arenales, 26, died last year after an encounter with police officers in Alameda, California. , family members and other loved ones gathered with candles for a vigil at the Alameda park where Mario died at age 26. from officials in months, according to the familys attorn. Or follow her on Twitter @ljfernandez. Mario Gonzalez died after three officers and a civilian employee pinned him face down on the ground for more than five minutes. ey. Then officers can be seen putting Gonzalezs hands behind his back and pinning him facedown. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. SEE ALSO: Andrew Brown Jr. shot 5 times, including in back of head, attorneys say independent The report notes that, according to the autopsy, Gonzalez had no lethal injuries., Alison Berry Wilkinson, an attorney who represents the three officers, told CNN they are grateful the district attorney recognized that this tragic death was an unintended consequence of their legitimate and lawful actions.. A person holds up a Justice 4 Mario sign while listening in to an April 27 news conference hosted by Mario Gonzalezs family and supporters outside the Alameda Police Department. Feds drop felony gun case days after defense argued SFPD illegally arrested, searched defendant Gonzalezs death is under investigation by the Alameda County Sheriffs Office and the county district attorneys office. The nearly hourlong video from two officers body cameras shows police talking to Gonzalez in a park after receiving 911 calls that he appeared to be disoriented or drunk. Attorney Julia Sherwin, on behalf of Gonzalezs 5-year-old son, filed a suit in December 2021 and Gonzalezs mother, Edith Arenales, also filed suit in February 2022. And while none of his family members knows exactly what Gonzalez was doing in Alameda that day, they said he often traveled therefor peace and quiet. The death of Mario Gonzalez Arenales, a 26-year-old man whose fatal encounter with Alameda police in April became a flash point in a national debate, resulted from the toxic effects of methamphetamine, combined with the physiological stress of restraint by officers and other underlying conditions, according to the Alameda County coroner. Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much Wife of popular Wild 94.9 radio host JV says new information suggests he will not be coming back, Bay Area federal judge orders extradition of woman suspected of killing MSU student in hit-and-run, San Jose: Home raided as part of explosives and narcotics investigation, Police body camera video released a week after his death, filed a legal claim against the city of Alameda, have the autopsy reviewed by outside agencies, Dear Abby: My wife said she doesn't like it, but it's part of my life. The Alameda County Sheriffs office has asked outside agencies to assist in reviewing the autopsy of Mario Gonzalez, who died in the custody of Alameda police The loss of Mr. Gonzalez is a terrible tragedy, and our thoughts and prayers go out to his loved ones.. And Mario's 5-year-old son, also named Mario, will hold them accountable in civil court in a federal civil rights lawsuit.". 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