Charges dropped against 1 suspect in death of Oakland police officer Tuan Le
All charges were dropped on Wednesday against one of the defendants connected to the deadly shooting of Oakland Police Officer Tuan Le.
The decision was made by the Alameda County District Attorney's office.
Le was working undercover on a burglary unit early on the morning of Dec. 29, 2023, when he was shot in the head and killed while driving an undercover vehicle. The shooting happened as the suspects were trying to get away from a marijuana grow facility they are accused of burglarizing twice in the same night.
Police later identified the suspected shooter as Mark Sanders and others involved as Allen Brown and Sebron Russell.
Investigators said Marquise Cooper acted as a "lookout," and while he was originally charged with murder, a judge dismissed those charges a few weeks ago during a preliminary hearing. On Wednesday, the Alameda County District Attorney's office dropped all the remaining charges against Cooper.
"Those charges were dismissed today without prejudice and the investigation of his role and his conduct is continuing," said Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price.
The president of the police officers' union, Huy Nguyen, released a statement shortly after saying "The Oakland Police Officers Association is concerned by the office of District Attorney Pamela Price and its decision to drop all charges against suspect Marquise Cooper who was involved in the murder of our fellow officer ... Perpetrators of violent crimes must face consequences, otherwise it sends a dangerous message that undermines public safety."
This all comes as Le's family submitted a claim against the city, which historically has meant a lawsuit is pending.
Tuan Le claim against the City of Oakland
The letter says the burglary suppression unit Le was working on that night had been understaffed for some time, and officers even complained about how unsafe it was. It goes on to say the department required Le to place himself in unreasonable danger by responding for a second time to the same burglary location.
Former police academy trainer Don Cameron said that's just part of the job.
"You know it's a very unfortunate situation, but police work is inherently a dangerous job. People that do burglaries of dispensaries and take products, take money, are a higher risk criminal and they're probably going to be armed," said Cameron.
No lawsuit has been filed yet against the city on behalf of Le's family, but their attorney, Michael Haddad, said it's a definite possibility as they learn more about exactly what happened that night.
As for the three remaining suspects, they're all due back in court again on Sept. 20 when trial dates should be set.
When asked for a comment on Le's family's claims, Oakland police media representatives said they do not comment on pending litigation and referred KPIX to the city attorney's office. The City Attorney's office responded that it had no comment.
