The families of five men recently killed in law enforcement-involved shootings gathered Monday on the front steps of the San Diego Hall of Justice and called for changes in both use of force policy and the way those deadly incidents are investigated by police and deputies.
"Are any of us equipped to deal with this type of crisis?" Flora Rivera, sister of Raul Rivera, said.
Raul Rivera, 42, of San Diego was shot numerous times and declared dead at the scene in Nestor over Memorial Day Weekend.
SDPD officials said he was holding a knife and refused the officers' commands to drop the weapon. Less-than-lethal weapons like stun guns and bean bags were used to subdue Rivera, but weren't effective. Rivera was shot as he allegedly advanced on the officers with the knife pointed at them, according to SDPD officials.
Rivera's sister wondered why it had to come to that point at all.
"Why wasn’t there somebody educated enough to calm the situation down?" she asked.
The District Attorney's office has yet to decide of the three officers who shot Rivera acted lawfully.
Also in attendance were family members of Jonathon Coronel, Sergio Weick, Alfred Olango and Earl McNeil.
On July 5, Jonathon Coronel, 24, was in a crouched position, facing a deputy when he raised his hand—which was covered by a T-shirt—toward the deputy. The deputy fired at Coronel because he feared for his life, investigators said.
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Sixteen rounds were fired at Coronel, a documented gang member wanted on a probation violation, and he was struck multiple times and killed, SDSO officials said.
After a thorough review of the evidence the deputies’ use of deadly force was considered reasonable under the circumstances, the DA’s office said.
Sergio Weick, 33, was shot and killed after a confrontation with deputies on Aug. 11, 2016.
Following a pursuit, deputies shot Weick on the left side of his body when they say he reached for his waist and “appeared to reach for a weapon." The deputy yelled several times for Weick to put his hands up, officials said.
The District Attorney's Office ruled the shooting was justified.
Alfred Olango, 38, was shot and killed by El Cajon police officers on Tuesday, Sept. 27. He was first reported to be walking in and out of traffic in the middle of the street and “not acting like himself,” when his sister called officers for help.
El Cajon Police Chief Jeff Davis said Olango refused multiple instructions to remove his hand from in his pocket before he pulled out an object and held it in front of him “like he would be firing a gun.” The object was later determined to be a vaping device.
Video of the shooting captured an officer approaching Olango in the parking lot of a strip mall in El Cajon, then firing several rounds just moments later.
Former District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis said that the only reasonable conclusion after looking at the facts of the case was that the "officer's actions were legally justified and understandable."
Flora Rivera, Raul’s sister, questioned if the officers were properly trained in implicit bias. The DA’s office said it has undergone training for years.
“The loss of life, no matter what the circumstances, leaves the families with grief and pain,” the DA’s office said. Investigating these shootings is “one of the most serious responsibilities of the job of District Attorney.”
The San Diego Police Department or the San Deigo County Sheriff's Department did not respond to NBC 7's requests for comment.
