Heres why thats wise, An assault and fatal stabbing in the middle of class at a Santa Rosa high school, With unfounded fraud claims swirling, red California county dumps Dominion voting machines, Man arrested in connection to 7 bombings in Fresno has links to hate group, authorities say. The autopsy released eight months after the incident found that Mario Gonzalez died due to a heart attack during an April 19 struggle with police. Tom Cruise's 'ditching' of Suri showcased by Judd Apatow's 'co-parenting' joke, ex-Scientology exec says, Ask Amy: I feel guilty for not speaking up about my co-worker's activities, Ask Amy: I had a good reason not to tell my friend I was moving, Warriors 3 Things: Steve Kerr entered playoff mode before Golden State's win over Portland. 2021 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. Former Pleasanton cop found not guilty of murder in DUI crash 2. Experts have expressed shock at his death, questioning why the officers pinned him when he appeared to pose no imminent threat. A man died after being restrained by police in California. At least two officers knelt on him until he stopped breathing and lost his pulse. The officers who restrained Gonzalez, James Fisher, Cameron Leahy, and Eric McKinley, remain on administrative leave while the investigation continues, city of Alameda spokeswoman Sarah Henry told KTVU. Caution: It is graphic. Crime and Public Safety | 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 last delay was on Tuesday. Mario Gonzalez Died Of 'Restraint Asphyxiation' By Police, New Autopsy Finds An independent autopsy confirmed what the Latino fathers family had declared: Police in hide caption. April 19, 2021. She said she plans to file a federal civil lawsuit. Email Evan atevan.sernoffsky@fox.comand follow him on Twitter @EvanSernoffsky. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Then the cops put Marios hands behind his back and pinned him facedown. 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. An independent autopsy confirmed what Mario Gonzalezs family had maintained all along: The 26-year-old Latino father died last year because Alameda, California, police officers knelt on his back for several minutes until he stopped breathing not, as the Alameda County coroners report had implied, because of meth in his system. No officers were charged. Separately, the Police Department is conducting an internal affairs probe into the altercation, and the district attorney is reviewing the case to determine whether to file criminal charges. 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. WARNING GRAPHIC VIDEO:Alameda officers kneel on man before his death, Several experts have said that officers have long been trained not to handcuff people facedown on the ground as it can lead to "restraint asphyxia.". Meth didnt kill Mario, the officers did.. They did a tremendous job under difficult circumstances.". A spokesperson told HuffPost that the city does not have any substantive update on the investigations., These officers should have been fired the moment that the footage was revealed showing them suffocating Mario to death, Gerardo Gonzalez, his brother, said in a statement from the familys attorney. Known as @lacrimes on Twitter, during almost 30 years at The Times he also has been part of the breaking news staff that won Pulitzers in 1998, 2004 and 2016. ALAMEDA The death of an Oakland man who went unconscious while police held him to the ground was determined to be a homicide as a result of the altercation with officers, as well as methamphetamine use,and obesity, according to an autopsy made public this week. It is available at https://www.gofundme.com/f/justice-for-mario-gonzalez-and-his-only-son. Were going to take care of you, OK, were going to take care of you, one officer tells him. And like so many others, he hadn't been able to find work since then. We are struggling with these daily routines while carrying the burden of grief.. Mario Gonzalez Arenales, 26, died last year after an encounter with police officers in Alameda, California. pizza favorite shuts down after 13 years, plus more closings, Your Privacy Choices (Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads). However, the independent autopsy, performed April 27, 2021 by renowned forensic pathologist Dr. Bennet Omalu, says the primary cause of death was restraint asphyxiation. 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. In an autopsy report released Friday, chief forensic pathologist Vivian Snyder categorized Gonzalezs death as a homicide, while citing other factors, including s attorneys, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, countered the report from the Alameda County coroners office, last year, which had called the death a homicide but listed the principal cause as toxic effects of methamphetamine., The report included under other significant conditions the physiological stress of altercation and restraint, as well as obesity and alcoholism., On April 19, 2021, police in the Bay Area city, knelt on Marios back for nearly four minutes, until he died. Part of HuffPost Politics. Those statement did not mention Gonzalez being pinned to the ground. In the department's first announcement about Gonzalez's death, policeoriginallytold the public that hehad died of a "medical emergency" after a "scuffle" with police. We believe it is an accurate and very comprehensive conclusion in the death of Mario Gonzalez.. Attorneys for his family dispute the cause. Crime and Public Safety | Omalu adds that methamphetamine levels in Gonzalezs blood fell within recreational rather than life-threatening ranges and that alcohol levels were extremely low and did not contribute to his death.. Officers Eric McKinley, James Fisher, and Cameron Leahy controlled Gonzalezs arms, back, and legs as his arms were cuffed behind his back, the report says. He died after three officers and a civilian parking enforcement employee pinned him face down on the ground for more than five minutes, according to body camera video released this week by police amid three separate investigations. Based on the totality of available information, including investigative, autopsy, and laboratory findings, it is apparent that Mr. Gonzalez Arenales experienced cardiopulmonary arrest because of multiple factors, the report said. Rich L.A. homeowners are snapping them up, High school basketball: Southern California and Northern California Regional results and updated pairings, Opinion: How California came to treat UC Berkeley students noise as a dire environmental threat, Opinion: California gave up on mandating COVID vaccines for schoolchildren. Walking around with that level of meth, he wouldnt have dropped dead at that moment but for the force by police, Haddad said. The family has not gotten any updates from officials in months, according to the familys attorney. Gonzalez in the video acts dazed and struggles to answer officers questions. But he questioned the coroners finding that methamphetamine was the main cause of Gonzalezs death. An independent autopsy confirmed what the Latino fathers family had declared: Police in Alameda, California, killed him, not meth. "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. Examiners also detected ethanol in Gonzalezs system and found signs of alcoholism and obesity, including an enlarged and dilated heart and an enlarged liver with severe fatty change. The officers, as they seek to restrain him, repeatedly ask Gonzalez for his full name and birth date. State storms arent letting up. It is unclear if the city will lift the hold on the release of more information now that the autopsy has been released. All Rights Reserved. After graduating from Coliseum College Preparatory in Oakland, Gonzalez had plannedto go toAlameda College. CNNs Stella Chan contributed to this report. He was anxious and was prescribed medications to help. It was not clear Friday if that had taken place. He adored our son and was a good father. It is shameful that District Attorney Nancy OMalley did not have the courage to bring criminal charges for this homicide. 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. The second caller said Gonzalez was lingering in Scout Park at the corner of Oak and Powell streets, with what the caller suspected were stolen bottles of alcohol. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Adante Pointer, lawyer for Edith Arenales, Gonzalezs mother, told CNN the family is disappointed the officers wont be criminally prosecuted but the decision doesnt come as a surprise. Though both claims are related, they will remain separate but move forward side-by-side, Sherwin told CNN. Omalu wrote in part that Gonzalezs brain injury, caused by the asphyxiation, far exceeds and supersedes the toxicity caused by methamphetamine in his bloodstream as a cause of death. Heres how. Parking enforcement officer Charlie Clemmens, who the city also determined was involved in the death, "is not being scheduled for work," Henry said. The coroner's officer ruled the death a homicide. Sherwin said she believes Gonzalez died of asphyxiation and said the amount of methamphetamine in his system was low. IRS delays tax deadline for Bay Area, but California hasn't followed: What should you do? for the officers. later that month after an outcry from the family, showed officers approach Mario, alone in a park with bottles of alcohol nearby, after a neighbor called about someone being intoxicated. "Here it's pretty obvious this individual is suffering from compression restraint asphyxia," Obayashi said. The next day, Chauvin was convicted of murder and manslaughter for pinning Floyd to the pavement with his knee on the Black man's neck in a case that touched off a national reckoning over racism and police brutality. Mario is shown on the video calmly speaking with the officers for nearly nine minutes. The methamphetamine detected in his blood combined with his enlarged and dilated heart could have together resulted in fatal cardiac arrhythmia, the report continued. The Alameda Police Department said in its first news release that officers attempted to detain the man, and a physical altercation ensued. He wanted to be able to provide for his 4-year-old son, Mario Jr., whom he shared parenting duties with his ex-girlfriend in Fremont. Civil Rights attorney Julia Sherwin, who is representing the family, says her office will continue to press their case in court that it was the officers' prone weight restraint, not meth, that killed Gonzalez. That's utterly ridiculous. Fugitive in $18 million COVID fraud scheme extradited to U.S. All three remain on paid leave. The independent autopsy, which was requested by the familys attorneys, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, countered the report from the Alameda County coroners office last year, which had called the death a homicide but listed the principal cause as toxic effects of methamphetamine. The report included under other significant conditions the physiological stress of altercation and restraint, as well as obesity and alcoholism.. Then officers can be seen putting Gonzalezs hands behind his back and pinning him facedown. On April 19, police in the Bay Area city of Alameda responded to a report of an intoxicated man and a possible theft. The emphasis on Gonzalezs drug history incensed an attorney representing the deceased mans son, who accused the coroner of trying to shield the police from scrutiny. During the encounter, Gonzalez remained in a prone position with pressure applied to his posterior torso and legs, the report said. The city also acknowledged that there are simultaneous investigations into Gonzalez's death by the Alameda County District Attorneys Office, the Alameda County Sheriffs Office and the citys internal investigation remain active and open. Two wrongful death suits, nearly mirroring one another, have been filed against the City of Alameda alleging the officers detained Gonzalez without reasonable suspicion and caused him to die of asphyxia. On April 19, 2021, police in the Bay Area city knelt on Marios back for nearly four minutes, until he died. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Alison Berry Wilkinson, the attorney for the officers, called the situation "very sad" but said the autopsy clearly shows Gonzalez "died from drug toxicity. Alameda police Officer Erick McKinley was among several officers who responded on April 19, 2021 in the citys Scout Park after a resident called police to claim Gonzalezs presence was scaring his wife. But he delayed those dreams to helphis mom with the bills and care for his younger brother who suffers from severe autism. City officials stated they are "committed to full transparency and accountability in the aftermath of Mr. Gonzalez's death." Members of the Gonzalez family believe police used excessive force when they attempted to arrest him. Alameda Police "mishandled" the arrest of 26-year-old Mario Gonzalez last week and caused his death, according to the attorney representing the man's family. Gonzalez died April 19 after police pinned him to the ground for at least five minutes. 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Gonzalez wont produce any identification, so the officers try to force his hands behind his back to handcuff him, but he does not let his arms go limp. with our own eyes, Julia Sherwin, an attorney for the Gonzalez family, said in a statement to the Chronicle. The other refuses, saying he doesn't want to lose his grip. Lisa Fernandez and Evan Sernoffsky are reporters forKTVU. ", "It was the toxic level of drugs not the actions of the officers," Berry Wilkinson said in an interview. A week after Gonzalezs death, the city identified the officers placed on leave as James Fisher, Cameron Leahy and Eric McKinely. Mario Gonzalez, 26, died after Alameda police officers restrained him on his stomach for five minutes in a case that had echoes of the murder of George Floyd. The new autopsy results, released Wednesday, said that Gonzalez died on April 19, 2021, from restraint asphyxiation, according to forensic pathologist Bennet Omalu. 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