OAKLAND — The mother of Mario Gonzalez has filed a federal suit against the Alameda police officers that piled on top of him for several minutes, as he passed out and later died, marking the second time in two months a member of Gonzalez’s family has taken legal action.
The suit, filed Thursday on behalf of Edith Arenales in federal court, accuses Alameda officers of using “unjustified deadly force” while Gonzalez begged for his life. The suit names Officers James Fisher, Cameron Leahy and Eric McKinely, as well as Alameda interim police Chief Randy Fenn, and the city, as defendants.
“Officers used their combined body weight to press Mario face down into the pavement and foreseeably triggered a medical crisis from which Mario tragically never recovered and caused his untimely death,” civil rights attorneys Adante Pointer and Patrick Buelna wrote in the civil complaint.
Gonzalez’s April 2021 death was ruled a homicide after a lengthy coroner investigation. The medical examiner attributed it to the struggle with the officers as well as methamphetamine use and obesity
Last December, Gonzalez’s 5-year-old son filed a federal suit with near-identical allegations. The parties haven’t explained why they’ve filed suits separately.
Body camera video of Gonzalez’s death shows officers holding him to the ground for five minutes before he goes unconscious. Blood tests were positive for methamphetamine and amphetamine, according to the autopsy report. The autopsy also noted that Gonzalez had more than 20 cuts and bruises.
The Alameda County District Attorney is still investigating and thus far hasn’t ruled whether to charge the involved officers.
Attorney Patrick Moriarty, who is representing the officers, told the news station KTVU, “The loss of Mario Gonzalez’s life was indeed tragic, and the City will defend itself, its former police chief, and the named officers against the allegations.”
