Mario Gonzalez Family Files Suit Against Alameda, Police Officers

ALAMEDA, CA — The family of Mario Gonzalez is suing the City of Alameda and the officers involved in his death. The suit, filed in the Northern District of California, was filed on behalf of Gonzalez’s 5-year-old son, Mario Jr.

A civil complaint filed Friday names the city and four Alameda police officers – former Interim Police Chief Rendy Fenn and officers James Fisher, Cameron Leahy, and Eric McKinely, as defendants. The four officers have been on administrative leave since an April 19 incident where they detained Gonzalez, whom they suspected of liquor store theft, until he went unconscious and died shortly after.

Citing an Alameda County coroner’s report that ruled that Gonzalez’s April death was a homicide, the suit alleges that the city was negligent in hiring and training the officers. It also alleges that Gonzalez died from “excessive force, improper restraint, mechanical asphyxia, and positional, restraint, and compression asphyxiation of him.”

The suit alleges that officers ignored warning signs that Gonzalez was dying, including “several guttural yells and whimpers.”

“During all of this, Gonzalez squirmed around in a desperate attempt to breathe, but never attacked, threatened, or violently resisted any officer,” the suit claims.
The suit also argues that the officers had no reason to arrest Gonzalez in the first place, and Gonzalez was a victim of unconstitutional excessive force.

“Mario Gonzalez’s death was unnecessary and tragic,” Gonzalez family attorney Michael Haddad said in a prepared statement. “How many more people will have to be killed by police officers who ignore the kindergarten wisdom that people can’t breathe if you kneel on their back?”
The coroner’s report said that Gonzalez’s death was due to a mixture of the officer’s restraint, obesity, and methamphetamine use. According to the suit, Gonzalez was seen in Scout Park acting disoriented, and two neighbors called a non-emergency police number to report his behavior. Police ordered Gonzalez to provide his ID and he did not comply, but his attorneys argued that he did not commit any crime, and officers "escalated the otherwise calm interaction with force, each grabbing one of Mario Gonzalez's arms and then trying to force them behind his back by using pain compliance holds.”

Bodycam footage shows officers pinning Gonzalez face-down on his stomach, and another officer getting on his back. He was held in this position for five minutes until he could no longer breathe.

The incident, which occurred shortly before the guilty verdict for Minneapolis officer Derek Chauvin, sparked days of protests in Alameda.

Earlier this week, Gonzalez’s mother, who is being represented separately by civil rights attorney Adante Pointer, said the officers should be fired and face murder charges.