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(NSFW) Drone Footage Captured an Armed Gunman Being Shot by Salinas Police
Published 3 years ago
On Friday July 16, 2021, Officers from the Salinas Police department were dispatched to a home after receiving a call that a young man was brandishing a firearm and pointing it at his neighbors.
The suspect, 19-year-old Gerardo Martinez, was reported to be drunk and under the influence of methamphetamine during the initial 911 call. Martinez's neighbor had also reported the firearm could possibly be a BB gun, but they were unsure at this time.
Officers from the Salinas Police department arrived on the scene at 8:35 p.m., just 6 minutes after the initial call. Upon arriving at the scene, officers began giving commands in Spanish to Martinez to come out from the house and to disarm himself. At 8:36 p.m., Martinez briefly opened the door and peeked his head around the corner, then slammed the door. Roughly one minute later at 8:37 p.m., Martinez opens the door one final time, however this time he was armed with his weapon.
As he exited the door, Martinez raised the weapon and pointed it at responding officers. Raising the threat level, one officer took three shots from his patrol rifle, striking Martinez at least once in the chest. Upon neutralizing Martinez, officers closed the distance to retrieve the weapon and provide medical aid. When officers retrieved the weapon, it was evaluated and identified as a BB gun. Later that evening, Martinez was reported deceased from his gun inflicted injuries.
Although an investigation was launched to determine whether this was justifiable, California law defines a deadly weapon to include, but is not limited to, any loaded weapon from which a shot can result in death or other physical injury. As a result, the state Justice Department declined to further investigate the incident and stated "Mr. Martinez was armed according to DOJ's interpretation of the statute".