Over 100 demonstrators marched through Compton on Jan. 26 to protest the killing of Jose de la Trinidad by sheriff’s deputies.
Converging on the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Compton station, protesters demanded justice, not only for the Trinidad family, but for other victims of police shootings.
De la Trinidad, 36, was killed by deputies on Nov. 10, 2012, after attending his niece’s quinceañera. Deputies attempted to pull over the car that was carrying dela Trinidad for speeding. However, his brother, 39-year-old Francisco de la Trinidad, did not stop and attempted to evade the sheriffs.
Francisco de la Trinidad, who was later taken into custody, only stopped briefly to drop his brother off, who exited the car to comply with the sheriffs.
According to the sheriff’s department, deputies assumed de la Trinidad was armed, and seeing his hands pass his waistband, further assumed he was drawing a weapon.
De la Trinidad was shot seven times in the back and died at the scene. He was unarmed.
Speaking to demonstrators, Gigi Fahmi, a friend of de la Trinidad and his wife, described the victim as devoted to his spouse, Rosanna de la Trinidad, and his two daughters, ages three and six.
Fahmi took issue with what has been described as a “routine traffic stop” and demanded the deputies responsible for de la Trinidad’s death face criminal charges.
“You tell me,” she said, “what’s so routine about two sheriffs instructing an unarmed man to ‘stop, turn around, put your hands on your head,’ so sheriffs can then proceed to shoot him execution style, riddling his body with seven bullets?”
De la Trinidad’s death drew further attention after the Los Angeles Times interviewed a witness to the shooting who countered the sheriff’s department’s official account. The witness reported that de la Trinidad was complying with the deputies’ orders to turn around and raise his hands before being shot to death.
The sheriff’s department originally denied having interviewed any witnesses, but later acknowledged they had after being questioned by the Times. Officials blamed the discrepancy on poor inter-departmental communication.
Deputies blocked the entrance of their station with only a few feet between them and the demonstrators. This intimacy led many protesters to directly address the watchful deputies.
Damian Ramirez delivered a personal message to the sheriffs. He was a close friend of Michael Nida II, who was killed by Downey police in October of 2011. Like de la Trinidad, Nida was unarmed and gunned down in the back.
“No more murders of innocent men because you don’t know how to do your job, because you are afraid of the community you serve,” said Ramirez to the sheriffs. “The time has come to change the way you do business, the way you are trained to police these communities. These are human beings that you are stealing from their families, human beings who deserve to live the rest of their lives in peace and freedom.”
The sheriff’s department is investigating de la Trinidad’s death. Their findings are expected to be released soon.
