By Melinda Kukaj
OAKLAND, CA – A report by California Attorney General Rob Bonta this week was released on Che Noe Zuniga Jr.’s death at the hands of officers from the Bakersfield Police Department (BPD).
The California Department of Justice (DOJ) released this report, it said, in efforts to provide transparency as well as accountability in the practices of law enforcement.
In the news statement, California’s DOJ said, “the report provides a detailed analysis of the incident and outlines DOJ’s findings. After a thorough investigation, DOJ concluded that criminal charges were not appropriate in this case.”
DOJ added details of Zuniga Jr.’s death, stating, “On Aug. 7, 2021, officers from BPD were searching a residential neighborhood for Mr. Zuniga after he had been involved in a car chase and had exchanged gunfire with police officers on a public street. During the search, a police officer came across a trash can in the backyard of a residence that appeared to have a bulge in which he suspected Mr. Zuniga may be hiding.”
DOJ added that when officers began to meet in the backyard, Zuniga came from a trash can he was hiding in and began to run towards police, and then was fatally shot.
Attorney General Bonta stated, “we acknowledge that this incident posed challenges for all parties involved, including Mr. Zuniga’s family, law enforcement, and the community. The California Department of Justice remains steadfast in our commitment to working together with all law enforcement partners to ensure an unbiased, transparent, and accountable legal system for every resident of California.”
The DOJ added, state law requires “DOJ to investigate all incidents of officer-involved shootings resulting in the death of an unarmed civilian in the state…DOJ conducted a thorough investigation into this incident and concluded that the evidence does not show, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the officer involved acted without the intent to defend himself and others from what he reasonably believed to be imminent death or serious bodily injury.”
Although DOJ said there was not enough evidence to criminally charge officers involved in the death, it has identified several recommendations regarding policy that hopefully will prevent incidents such as these from occurring in the future.
The first recommendation from DOJ was the “Activation of Body Worn Cameras,” noting, “It is recommended that BPD amend its policy, to specifically provide that ‘enforcement activity’ includes a vehicle pursuit, and thus officers must activate their body-worn cameras at the time that an officer begins a vehicle pursuit.”
The second recommendation stated in the news release was, “Muting the Audio of Body Worn Cameras,” recommending “BPD emphasizes the requirements of its current policy across the department, and specifically ensures that all officers are trained on the appropriate circumstances in which body worn camera recordings may be muted, the required actions an officer needs to take prior to effectuating a mute, and the allowable duration of a mute.”
Finally, the last recommendation said agencies should ensure officers do not discuss the shooting among themselves before making statements.
“It is recommended that BPD amend its policy, to explicitly state that, following an officer-involved shooting, the officers may not discuss the shooting with other officers, except to provide a public safety statement, prior to providing a formal criminal or administrative statement,” said the DOJ.
