Crowds rally to protest police violence in Vallejo after fatal shooting of 22-year-old Sean Monterrosa
VALLEJO, Calif. (KGO) -- Protesters invested their Saturday afternoon marching to the Vallejo Police Department where family members listed off the names of their loved ones they say died at the hands of Vallejo Police.
Anton Barrett, Cousin Willie James McCoy and Mario Romero were just some of the names family members talked about.
Protesters demanded the speedy release of video of the most recent deadly officer-involved shooting of 22-year-old Sean Monterrosa from June 2.
"My brother did not deserve to be murdered, not like anyone else that's here too," Michelle Monterrosa said to the crowd.
Civil Rights Attorney John Burris said the police have 45 days to release the footage.
"I met their family, the mother and father this is shocking to them. Hurtful to them. If they saw the video they may have a different view of all of this cause the cameras themselves can be helpful to them, but it could be hurtful too and so for me, I like to know," Burris said.
Family, friends and members of the community later gathered for a vigil at the Walgreens off Redwood Street where Monterrosa was shot by police. Chief Shawny Williams says an officer thought he saw the butt of a handgun that turned out to be a hammer tucked into the pocket of Sean's sweatshirt.
"The last text that he sent out was to get people to sign a petition regarding George Floyd. So he was a young man that was cognizant of the social justice issues that unbeknownst to him minutes later - he was going to you know - his memory was going to be a part of changing police violence," said Melissa Nold, one of the attorney's for the Monterrosa family.
During the rally, Burris said, "There was nothing to hide. Then release him. The child was on his knees. And when you're on your knees, your hands are up that is surrendering. That is not a basis to shoot and kill him. And so it is our responsibility to ensure the safety and protect Sean and his image and his life. And to make sure his family appreciates that his life has not been lost in vain. It is fundamentally wrong to shoot someone who was trying to surrender."
The Vallejo Police Department released an initial statement of the incident at 4:08 a.m. on June 2, approximately 3.5 hours after the shooting. It did not include that police had killed Monterrosa.
Both the ABC7 News I-Team and Monterrosa's family have confirmed Sean Monterrosa's official time of death was 1:31 a.m. Tuesday, June 2.
Monterrosa's family says it matters to them because it differs from what Chief Shawny Williams said in an earlier press conference.
The family is now planning Sean Monterrosa's funeral.
