Shooting of Antonio Zambrano-Montes

Shooting of Antonio Zambrano-Montes
Date February 10, 2015
Location Pasco, Washington, U.S.
Participants Killed: Antonio Zambrano-Montes
Officers: Three Pasco Police Department officers

The shooting of Antonio Zambrano-Montes occurred on February 10, 2015, in Pasco, Washington, United States. Zambrano, a 35-year-old originally from Michoacan, Mexico, was shot and killed by three police officers after allegedly throwing rocks at cars and officers.

Background

Zambrano-Montes was raised in Michoacán, Mexico,[1] the third of sixteen children born to Jesús Montes and Agapita Montes-Rivera.[2] In 2004, he immigrated to the United States to work in the orchards.[1] He was married with two daughters.[1] His wife had previously obtained a protection order against him alleging abuse.[1] Zambrano-Montes was in the country illegally and did not speak English.[1][3] He was arrested for assaulting a police officer in January 2014. The police stated that he had tried to grab an officer’s pistol as well as thrown objects at the officers. He pled guilty in June 2014.[1][3] Prior to the incident, he had spent some time in a homeless shelter[4] and was "struggling emotionally"[5] after being unable to work after an injury.[6] According to police reports, the officers first tried to subdue him with voice commands and then with a Taser.[5]

Shooting

Three officers—Ryan Flanagan, Adam Wright and Adrian Alaniz—fired on Zambrano-Montes.[7] Flanagan and Wright are white, and Alaniz is Hispanic.[1] None of them was wearing a body camera.[4] The shooting was caught on video by a civilian who recorded the incident from about 50 feet away[8] showing that Zambrano-Montes was running away from police and either had a rock in his hand or was unarmed as he was fatally shot by the officers.[9][10]

Aftermath

The death of Zambrano-Montes led to criticism by the Mexican government[11][12] with Mexico's Congress calling the shooting an "act that outrages all Mexicans" and the country's President, Enrique Peña Nieto, condemning the officers' "disproportionate use of lethal force."[13] There were also mass protests in Pasco.[14] The family of Zambrano have filed a $25 million claim against the city of Pasco claiming excessive force led to his death[15][1] and have hired civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump who also represented the family of Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Florida[9] and the family of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri;[16][17] and Jose Baez, who represented Casey Anthony.[18]

The three officers involved in the shooting are currently on paid administrative leave.[19] As of Feb. 16, "a multiagency investigation was underway" [20] A local group, Consejo Latino, called for an additional investigation by the United States Department of Justice.[21] There are 68 agents on the police force in Pasco of which 14 (21%) are Hispanic.[22] Pasco is 56% Hispanic.[23]

On Feb. 21, 2015, the Tri-City Herald reported that 100 protesters had attended a rally focused on the incident, with a group of fifty shutting down a bridge into the city that evening. The newspaper stated that "turmoil continued in Pasco nearly two weeks after the controversial shooting of Antonio Zambrano-Montes,"[24] as protests are not typically of this size in this town. A small ongoing presence of activists was present at the Pasco City Hall.[25]

On Feb. 26, a report indicated "The U.S. Attorney's office for Eastern Washington ... [had joined] the FBI in keeping track of the investigation."[26]

As of Feb. 27, 2015, reports indicated that seventeen shots had been fired; there were conflicting reports regarding as to whether autopsy results indicated the victim had been shot in the back.[27] The medical examiner's analysis was expected to be complete in about a month's time; transcripts of witness statements were not expected to be available for several weeks.[28] Zambrano's family commissioned a third autopsy conducted by forensic pathologist Werner Spitz.[29] A federal mediator from the US Justice Department was dispatched in late March to help to mediate talks between the Pasco police department and local community groups who believe the shooting was unjustified[30] while Zambrano-Montes’ widow has called for the three officers to be charged with murder.[30] A request to Governor Jay Inslee by Latino advocacy group Consejo Latino to remove Franklin County Prosecutor Shawn Sant from the investigation was refused stating that prosecutors were obligated to fully investigate and prosecute crimes absent "very specific, tangible, and compelling reasons."[31][32]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 New York Times: "Killing in Washington State Offers ‘Ferguson’ Moment for Hispanics - Pasco Police’s Shooting of Rock Thrower Draws Comparisons to Michael Brown Case" by By JULIE TURKEWITZ and RICHARD A. OPPEL Jr. February 16, 2015
  2. ↑ Televisa: "Hermanos esperan en Colima restos de Antonio Zambrano" Febrero 22, 2015
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Univision: "Abogado de Ferguson asesorará a la familia de Antonio Zambrano" February 23, 2015
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 The Daily Mail: "Investigators appeal for witnesses to come forward so they can 'better understand the mental heath [sic]' of an unarmed orchard worker gunned down by police, sparking mass protests" 20 February 2015
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 New York Times: "New Details Revealed in Shooting by Police in Washington State" by JULIE TURKEWITZ February 19, 2015
  6. ↑ El Milenio: "Mexicano baleado en EU tenía quebradas las manos: primo - La policía mató a tiros a Antonio Zambrano Montes tras supuestamente lanzar piedras a los agentes, pero José Rosario duda de esa versión porque su familiar tuvo un accidente en las manos" Jesús Badillo Febrero 13, 2015
  7. ↑ The Guardian: "Pasco shooting: police will not say how many bullets fired at unarmed man - Officers investigating fatal shooting of Antonio Zambrano-Montes concede for the first time that three officers involved in shooting opened fire" by Oliver Laughland 19 February 2015
  8. ↑ Newsmax: "Antonio Zambrano-Montes, Homeless Man Throwing Rocks, Killed by Police" 13 Feb 2015 |"In an email interview, he said he decided to start recording when he saw an officer trying to use a stun gun on the man. Infante said he saw the man throw a few rocks at police officers but he didn't see him hit any officers....He didn't throw any rocks after he started running"
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 New York Daily News: "Family of unarmed Mexican man killed by police in Pasco, Wash., hires civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump" BY Rachelle Blidner February 24, 2015
  10. ↑ NBC News: "Rock-Throwing Man Killed By Police in Pasco Had No Other Weapons" by Phil Helsel February 13, 2015
  11. ↑ The Guardian: "Mexico condemns 'disproportionate' use of force by US police in Pasco shooting" by Oliver Laughland 13 February 2015 | "The government of Mexico deeply condemns incidents in which force is used in a disproportionate manner, even more so when that use of force leads to loss of life."
  12. ↑ El Milenio: "Condena SRE uso de fuerza letal contra mexicano en EU - Antonio Zambrano, originario de Michoacán, quien presuntamente agredió con piedras a dos policías murió de varios disparos de los agentes cuando huía de ellos en Pasco, Washington" Febrero 12, 2015
  13. ↑ Vice News: "Cops Fired 17 Rounds at Unarmed Mexican Immigrant Antonio Zambrano-Montes" February 26, 2015
  14. ↑ MSNBC: "Hundreds protest death of Antonio Zambrano-Montes in Washington" by Phil Helsel February 17, 2015
  15. ↑ Washington police shooting, CNN
  16. ↑ Huffington Post: "Ferguson Lawyer To Represent Antonio Zambrano-Montes' Family" by NICHOLAS K. GERANIOS and TAMI ABDOLLAH February 23, 2015
  17. ↑ Al Jazeera: "Ferguson lawyer to represent family of Pasco police shooting - Killing of Mexican man in Washington state for allegedly throwing stones sparked outrage across the nation" by Renee Lewis February 23, 2015
  18. ↑ Orlando Sentinel: "Baez, Crump retained in Washington cop shooting" By Gal Tziperman Lotan February 27, 2015
  19. ↑ International Business Times: "Who Is Antonio Zambrano-Montes? Hispanic Community Demands Justice In Fatal Police Shooting Of Unarmed Mexican National" by Morgan Winsor February 17 2015
  20. ↑ Carter, Mike (2015-02-13). "Family of man shot by Pasco police files $25 million claim". Seattle Times - The Today File. Retrieved 2015-03-04.
  21. ↑ "Pasco Latino Leaders: Feds Need To Investigate Fatal Police Shooting". NBC News.com. 2015-02-16. Retrieved 2015-03-04.
  22. ↑ BBC: "La muerte de un mexicano a tiros de la policía que causa indignación en EE.UU." 18 febrero 2015
  23. ↑ Houston Chronicle: "Deadly shooting of Mexican man throwing rocks stirs protests" by NICHOLAS K. GERANIOS February 20, 2015
  24. ↑ Richardson, Tyler (2015-02-21). "Shooting protesters rally in Pasco, block traffic on cable bridge". Tri-CityHerald.com - Crime & court news. Retrieved 2015-03-04.
  25. ↑ Rivero, Daniel (2015-02-23). "A small band of protesters won’t let the Pasco police shooting be forgotten". Fusion. Retrieved 2015-03-04.
  26. ↑ Gamboa, Suzanne (2015-02-26). "Feds Tell Latino Group They Are Monitoring Pasco Shooting Probe". NBC News.com. Retrieved 2015-03-04.
  27. ↑ "17 Shots: Police Killing of Unarmed Mexican Farmworker in Washington State Sparks Protest". Democracy Now!. 2015-02-27. Retrieved 2015-03-04.
  28. ↑ Planas, Roque (2015-02-25). "Pasco Police Fired 17 Shots At Unarmed Mexican Migrant For Throwing Rocks At Them". Huffington Post. Retrieved 2015-03-04.
  29. ↑ Tri-City Herald: "Zambrano family hires second attorney, has third autopsy performed in Florida" By Tyler Richardson February 27, 2015
  30. ↑ 30.0 30.1 The Guardian: "Federal mediator to lead Pasco talks over police shooting of Mexican man - Justice Department representative to mediate talks between police and community groups outraged over death of Antonio Zambrano-Montes" March 24, 2015
  31. ↑ Latin Post: "Zambrano-Montes Shooting Update: Washington Governor Refuses to Remove Prosecutor From Police Shooting Probe" by Roberto Ontiveros March 29, 2015
  32. ↑ Reuters: "Washington governor won't remove prosecutor probing police shooting of farmworker" By Eric M. Johnson March 27, 2015