Body cam video shows man pinned down by California police for 5 minutes. He later died
California police released body camera footage Tuesday of a man who died after being pinned to the ground by officers.
The video from the Alameda Police Department shows officers struggling to handcuff Mario Arenales Gonzalez in a park and repeatedly saying “please don’t resist us” before taking him to the ground.
As he was pinned Gonzalez became unresponsive, prompting officers to perform CPR.
In the initial news release, authorities said Gonzalez died on April 19 after police tried to detain him and a “physical altercation ensued.” Gonzalez then had a “medical emergency” and police said they tried “lifesaving measures.” Gonzalez was transported by the Alameda Fire Department to the hospital, where he later died.
Police said Gonzalez “appeared to be under the influence and a suspect in a possible theft.”
In addition to the video, officials released audio recordings of a caller saying a man had two Walgreens shopping baskets with alcohol bottles and broke the security tags off of them. Another call tells the 911 dispatcher: “He seems like he’s tweaking, but he’s not doing anything wrong. He’s just scaring my wife.”
The body cam footage shows a police officer asking Gonzalez for his name and identification and if he’s going to hurt himself or others. When Gonzalez struggles to provide his name and his I.D., the police try to take him into custody.
“Can you please put your hand behind your back and stop resisting us?” one officer says.
The police take Gonzalez to the ground and handcuff him, pinning him for several minutes.
Julia Sherwin, an attorney for Gonzalez’s family, said the police’s explanation is “misinformation,” The New York Times reported.
“His death was completely avoidable and unnecessary,” Sherwin said. “Drunk guy in a park doesn’t equal a capital sentence.”
Gerardo Gonzalez said at a Tuesday news conference that his brother wasn’t posing a threat, according to the publication.
“Alameda police officers murdered my brother,” he said.
The Alameda County Sheriff’s Department and the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office have launched investigations into the incident and there will also be an independent review of the case according to city officials.
The officers involved in the incident have been put on paid administrative leave, police said.
Gonzalez died one day before Derek Chauvin, a former Minneapolis police officer, was found guilty of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in the death of George Floyd during an arrest.
Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man, died while in police custody on May 25, and his death sparked an avalanche of protests across the nation. He died after Chauvin, who is white, pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes, as three other officers didn’t intervene.
This story was originally published April 28, 2021 at 1:10 PM with the headline "Body cam video shows man pinned down by California police for 5 minutes. He later died."