Family Believes Body-Cam Video Proves Fatal Police Shooting At SJSU Was Unjustified
SAN JOSE (KPIX) - The family of a man killed in an officer-involved shooting at San Jose State 5 years ago is reliving the trauma of that fatal police encounter and believes more than ever, it shouldn't have happened.
San Jose State police just released body cam footage from the fatal shooting of Antonio Lopez under California's new police transparency law. Now his family says they have what they need to prove it was unjustified.
The incident happened just outside campus in February of 2014.
For Laurie Valdez, watching it was like reliving a nightmare.
"Seeing him alive again hurt me because I knew in a minute I would see him dead again," said Valdez.
Valdez was Antonio Lopez's girlfriend. The couple have a son Josiah, who was only 4-years-old at the time of his father's death.
"You took my son's father, his sense of safety, his childhood and somebody has to pay for 5 years of hell," she says.
For Valdez, the video reaffirms what she has believed all along.
Lopez was an undocumented immigrant from Mexico and spoke minimal English. She says she can see him trying to de-escalate the confrontation with the two officers.
"His last words are it's ok, it's ok. Is it something to lose your life for," she asks.
An investigation cleared the officers of any wrongdoing, saying Lopez was closing in on an officer with a blade even after being tased.
The San Jose State Police Department released a statement saying it conducted a thorough and independent investigation into the shooting.
"The officer's use of force was deemed legally justifiable in response to an immediate threat that could potentially result in great harm or death," says the statement.
Laurie Valdez says this fight for her is just beginning. She hopes the public will also hear the 911 call and see the pictures and all the records associated with this case to paint clearer picture of what happened that day.
