Alameda County DA To Reopen Pleasanton OIS Case, And 7 Others

PLEASANTON, CA — The Alameda County District Attorney’s Office announced Tuesday its intention to reopen the investigation into the February 2022 Pleasanton officer-involved shooting, as well as seven other cases where suspects died in police custody. Two cases date back to 2008 and 2007.

The cases will be reviewed by a newly-formed Public Accountability Unit, which will review the conduct of law enforcement and public officials. A report released in early January from the office of then-Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O’Malley found that Pleasanton Officers Brian Jewell and Mario Guillermo were justified in their actions, and no charges were filed.

Price said in a news release that although three of the six officer-involved shootings were deemed justified, she feels her office did not have sufficient time to review the evidence.

“These reports were released at the 11th hour, just weeks before I took office. As the top prosecutor, I want to give each case a thorough review to ensure justice has not been forgotten,” she said. “I’ve made sure that my Office has attempted to [reach] out to each of the families of the deceased. The healing process cannot begin until we do our due diligence.”

The DA’s office said that it has asked local police chiefs and Alameda County Sheriff Yesenia Sanchez to return evidence for the eight cases “with the intention of reopening the cases for further review to determine whether charges should be filed or not.”

Patch reached out to the Pleasanton Police Department for comment and to confirm that they plan to re-release the evidence.

Price linked the new review to the fatal Tyre Nichols beating in a statement. “We have seen many thoughts and prayers being bandied about the police murder of Tyre Nichols in Memphis, Tennessee. The people of Tennessee want accountability – and so do the people of Alameda County,” she said. “I promised accountability. This unit and its work are the start of the reckoning Alameda County has asked for holding people accountable for their misconduct.”

On Feb. 17, 2022, two Pleasanton officers shot a knife-wielding man suspected of domestic violence following an hours-long standoff involving SWAT teams, crisis negotiating teams, and armored vehicles. Officers attempted to contact suspect Cody Chavez in a variety of ways, including knocking on the door, calling and texting, announcing their presence through the car’s PA system, and eventually deploying a robot to enter the door, according to the DA report. All attempts were unsuccessful. Officers eventually broke the front living room window.

Chavez eventually left the apartment wielding a large knife. Officers shouted at him to drop the knife, but bodycam footage shows him running toward them. At that point two officers shot him fatally.

The PPD released this edited video on YouTube in February that provides footage and information regarding the incident.

In January, the DA report issued after a 10-month investigation found that Pleasanton officers were “justified in believing that Cody Chavez posed a significant threat of death or serious physical injury to himself and others” and that there is “overwhelming, credible, and admissible evidence that Officer Jewell and Officer Guillermo acted lawfully and in defense of others.”

Other officer-involved shootings now up for review include:

• Caleb Smith, Hayward Police
• Joshua Gloria, Fremont Police
• Agustin Gonsalez, Hayward Police
• Mack Jody Woodfox, Oakland Police
• Andrew Moppin-Buckskin, Oakland Police

Two cases in which suspects died in police custody will also be reviewed:

• Mario Gonzalez, Alameda Police
• Vinetta Martin, Santa Rita Jail