Family Of Man Killed By Grapevine Police Sue To Have Video Released
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TARRANT COUNTY (CBSDFW.COM) - The family of an unarmed man who was shot and killed by an officer with the Grapevine Police Department is suing the department.
The family of Ruben Garcia Villapando filed suit Tuesday to get Grapevine PD to release police dash cam video of the shooting.
Villapando was shot and killed on February 20, when a police chase in Grapevine ended in Euless. Police in Euless are handling the investigation because the incident ended along Highway 121 in their city.
So far, more than half-a dozen of Villalpondo's relatives have been allowed to see the video, which they say shows the egregious actions and unnecessary force used by Officer Robert Clark.
In late February, Domingo Garcia, the lawyer representing the family, said the video shows that Villalpando was unarmed and following police orders, despite him being called derogatory names.
The lawsuit was filed on the same day the Tarrant County Medical Examiner released Villalpando's autopsy report. While the report alleges Villapando was legally intoxicated at the time of the shooting, the family says that "does not change the fact that he was unarmed and had his hands in the air when shot."
On Tuesday Garcia said, "There is no death penalty in Texas yet for DWI, without a trial, nor does it change the fact that he was unarmed and had his hands in the air when he was shot. It's time they release the video tape."
The autopsy lists Villalpando's cause of death as gunshot wounds to the chest and the manner of death a homicide.
Villalpondo, a Mexican national with no criminal record, leaves behind a wife and four children who range in age from one to 10-years-old.
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