Crime & Safety
WATCH: Police Release Video Of Officer-Involved Shooting In Marin
Faramarz Aghazadeh, 48, was armed with a knife and a pair of shears when he was shot Aug. 5, 2018, in San Rafael.
SAN RAFAEL, CA – Police released a video Wednesday of an officer-involved shooting of a man last year in San Rafael.
The man who was shot, Faramarz Aghazadeh, 48, of San Rafael, was armed with a knife and a pair of shears when he was shot Aug. 5, 2018, in the area of Verdi and Lisbon streets.
San Rafael police said Aghazadeh was standing in the roadway, acting erratically and holding the weapons when they contacted him around 9 p.m. Officers talked to him for about 30 minutes and used multiple de-escalation techniques to get him to drop the knife and shears, police said.
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During the negotiation, Aghazadeh moved toward Belvedere Street where San Rafael police Officer Kevin MacDougald and Marin County sheriff's Deputy Jaime Rodarte were standing.
Rodarte told Aghazadeh to stop. He fired less-lethal projectiles from a shotgun at Aghazadeh, who continued moving toward him, police said.
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The projectiles had no effect. Aghazadeh sprinted toward Rodarte and came within several feet of the officer. MacDougald fired his gun three times to stop an assault on Rodarte.
Aghazadeh was hit three times. He was given medical treatment at the scene and taken to Marin General Hospital, police said.
Aghazadeh survived and pleaded guilty to assault on a police officer and obstructing a police officer. He was sentenced on May 5, 2019, to three years and eight months in prison.
The video police released on Wednesday included body-worn camera video from the deputy and two officers, as well as surveillance video from a nearby business and dispatch audio.
"No peace officer ever wants to use force, especially deadly force," San Rafael Police Chief Diana Bishop said. "The actions of both Officer MacDougald and Deputy Rodarte were appropriate responses to a dangerous and volatile situation," Bishop said.
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