A 911 call on the evening of Feb. 1 turned violent quickly. A caller from the Safeway store in Creekbridge on Constitution Boulevard in Salinas reported that a man was brandishing a gun at customers. Six officers arrived on the scene and found 37-year-old Guadalupe Aguirre Espinoza in the parking lot.
Within a few minutes, officers fired at Espinoza, injuring him.
The Salinas Police Department handed over the investigation to the Monterey County District Attorney's Office, as has been the custom for officer-involved shootings since 2016. District Attorney Jeannine Pacioni notified Salinas Police Chief Adele Fresé in a March 26 letter that she would not charge the officers involved, and was closing the case.
"My finding is there is insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt the officers unlawfully fired their weapons as Mr. Espinoza withdrew a replica firearm from his waistband," Pacioni wrote.
"The body camera footage demonstrates significant efforts by the Spanish-speaking officers to deescalate the situation by attempting to convince Espinoza to comply with reasonable directions. Mr. Espinoza was not compliant."
The officers who fired are Eduardo Bejarano, Francisco Delon, Jeffery Ramsden, Evan Adams, Chayene Garcia and Cameron Mitchell.
Pacioni's letter points out some of the findings of DA investigators, including their review of body camera footage and interviews with the officers and with witnesses. It also details the legal guidelines under which police officers are permitted to fire weapons.
"Under the law, any person—including a police officer—may use deadly force in self-defense or in defense of others if the person reasonably believes the immediate use of deadly force is necessary to defend against an imminent danger of great bodily injury or death," Pacioni wrote. "The danger does not need to have actually existed as long as the person reasonably believed the danger existed…
"Police officers can lawfully use deadly force even if from 20/20 hindsight other feasible options may have existed."
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