Davis police officer dismissed over man's 2019 death days after Golden 1 Center trespassing
DAVIS -- The Davis Police Department dismissed an officer after learning he withheld information about a man's death in 2019 after a security guard put his knee on the man's neck inside the Golden 1 Center.
The incident happened back in the early morning hours of July 2, 2019. Sacramento police say a man had gotten into the building and started acting erratically. A year later, a lawsuit was settled with the City of Sacramento and Universal Protection Services.
Mario Matthews' death also resulted in a change in California state law that required more training on the use of force among security guards.
Involved in the incident was Drake Quitagua, who court documents showed was the night manager at the time. Documents alleged he had less than four months of experience in security training, down to a one-day training class.
At the time, the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office did not file charges against the three security guards and three Sacramento Police Officers involved in the incident. No charges were filed.
Davis police, however, were not informed of Quitagua's history and say he did not inform them of the incident. In a background check, Quitagua's record came up clean.
The deputy chief of the Davis Police Department told CBS13 that Quitagua goes by two first names, Drake Daniel, but only one was used in court documents and media coverage. This, he said, is why Davis police didn't find out he was involved until they were given a tip and investigated.