The San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office has completed its review of the officer-involved shooting that occurred on August 28, 2018. This incident happened in the city of Fontana and involved the Fontana Police Department. The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department investigated the shooting.
SYNOPSIS
On Tuesday, August 28, 2018, at about 7:51 pm, police officers from the Fontana Police Department went to the Whispering Pines Apartment Complex in the 16000 block of San Bernardino Avenue in the city of Fontana. The police department received a call regarding a subject who had thrown furniture out of a window, crawled out the window, and ran away.
Two police officers arrived at the scene, with one of the officers driving his police car to the rear of the complex. The officer who was going to the back of the complex, Officer David Campa, was contacted by a person who informed him there was a male “acting crazy” in the rear of the complex. As they were speaking, Alonzo Camacho appeared from behind a trash dumpster. The person told Officer Campa the male he was referring to was Mr. Camacho.
Mr. Camacho approached the passenger side of Officer Campa’s police car. Mr. Camacho hit the side of the police car with a heavy metal cane, causing a scratch and dent in the car’s side.
Officer Campa exited the police car and walked to the back of it, drew his firearm, and ordered Mr. Camacho to put the cane down on the ground. Mr. Camacho did not put the cane down. Instead, he began walking towards Officer Campa, swinging the cane several times at Officer Campa.
Officer Campa moved away from the police car’s rear and ordered Mr. Camacho to drop the cane. Mr. Camacho held the cane with both of his hands and charged towards Officer Campa.
Officer Campa believed he would be hit with the heavy metal cane, so he fired his weapon. Mr. Camacho staggered but did not fall. Mr. Camacho, still holding the cane, moved towards Officer Campa. Officer Campa fired his weapon. Mr. Camacho fell to the ground and dropped the cane.
Officer Campa tried to handcuff Mr. Camacho, but he resisted the officer. With the help of the person who had first spoken to Officer Campa, they handcuffed Mr. Camacho.
Mr. Camacho was transported to a hospital to be treated for injuries he sustained during this incident.
On November 29, 2018, Mr. Camacho pled guilty to two counts of violating section 245(a)(4) of the California Penal Code, which specifies:
“Any person who commits an assault upon the person of another by any means of force likely to produce great bodily injury shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for two, three, or four years, or in a county jail for not exceeding one year, or by a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or by both the fine and imprisonment.“
Mr. Camacho was sentenced to five years in prison.
CONCLUSION
The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department investigated this shooting. The San Bernardino County District Attorney’s office completed a review of the investigation, reports, evidence, and statements pertaining to this incident.
Based on the facts presented in the reports and the applicable law, our office concluded that the officers’ use of lethal force was a proper exercise of his rights of self-defense and defense of others, and his actions were legally justified.
WHAT THE PUBLIC SHOULD KNOW
By providing a thorough explanation to the community regarding the review of officer-involved shootings, it is the intention of District Attorney Jason Anderson and the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office to maintain the community’s confidence and trust in its law enforcement officers and district attorney’s office.
Key Points of This Incident
- A person called the police department to report an argument was occurring at a neighbor’s apartment
- Furniture had been thrown out of the window of an apartment, and a male climbed through the window and ran away
- The officers responded to investigate the incident to determine if anyone was injured or if a crime had occurred
- During that investigation, Mr. Camacho aggressively confronted one of the police officers
- Mr. Camacho swung a metal cane repeatedly at one officer
- Mr. Camacho charged towards the officer as the officer was creating distance between himself and Mr. Camacho
- The police officer fired rounds at Mr. Camacho to stop the assault
- Mr. Camacho continued his attack
- The police officer fired more rounds at Mr. Camacho, stopping his attack
- Although he resisted being handcuffed, Mr. Camacho was finally taken into custody with the assistance of a witness helping the police officer
Police officers are trained to respond to these types of situations, and they continually update their training as new situations and techniques are identified.
Additionally, police officers have equipment on their belts, vests, and vehicles, which they use to complete their duties. Police officers are expected and authorized to use the equipment to protect themselves and others from suffering injuries or death. To some, watching a police officer using physical force against another person can be upsetting or disturbing.
Police officers prefer to use the least amount of force, whether it be their mere presence or verbal commands, to diffuse situations. However, there are situations, such as this incident, in which deadly force is necessary for the community’s safety and the police officers’ safety.
In rapidly tense situations, officers do not have a great deal of time planning, revising, or analyzing a crisis, such as readers of this article. When a situation evolves, officers must make the best decisions possible to protect and save lives in a condensed amount of time.
The community expects that the people they call upon to protect them, which is the police department in this situation, will not back down, be intimidated, or run scared when danger presents itself.
Mr. Camacho decided to approach the police officer, who was still seated in his police car. Mr. Camacho chose to swing a heavy metal cane at the police car, thus causing a dent, which is a crime in itself.
When the officer exited his vehicle and took the opportunity to still use the patrol car as a barrier between himself and Mr. Camacho, Mr. Camacho decided to continue to walk towards the officer while swinging the metal cane.
An object becomes a weapon when it is used in such a manner to inflict injury or death upon another person. In this particular incident, Mr. Camacho chose to use his cane as a weapon. He swung it at the police officer, which could have caused injury or death if it had struck the officer.
Law enforcement officers are not expected or required to be injured before taking action to prevent being hurt, or in severe cases, killed. The public expects their police officers to defend the public and themselves when forced into situations like this one.
The police officer moved away from his police car to create more distance between himself and Mr. Camacho. Mr. Camacho decided to charge towards the officer while swinging the cane and holding it with both hands.
Officer Campa fired several rounds from his firearm at Mr. Camacho. This still did not stop Mr. Camacho’s attack. Officer Campa fired more rounds at Mr. Camacho.
Mr. Camacho fell to the ground; however, Officer Campa had to have assistance from the witness placing handcuffs on Mr. Camacho because he continued to resist Officer Campa.
Mr. Camacho is solely responsible for the events which transpired in this incident.
THE OFFICER INVOLVED SHOOTING REVIEW TEAM
The district attorney’s office has always reviewed Officer-involved shootings in San Bernardino County.
Upon taking office, District Attorney Jason Anderson wanted a dedicated team of trained and experienced deputy district attorneys and investigators to review these shootings and respond to the scene of shootings.
The review unit did not respond to this shooting scene as the new team’s design, development, and protocols were still being developed.
Please visit SBCountyDA.org/ois to learn more about this team.
As the district attorney’s office, we realize the entire community is affected when force is used by the police, regardless of the situation or circumstances. Our responsibility is to ensure that all parties involved in cases such as the one involving Mr. Camacho acted lawfully.
NEWS COVERAGE
Fontana Herald News – Armed man is shot by Fontana officer during incident on Aug. 28
ORIGINAL NEWS RELEASE
San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department News Release
DISTRICT ATTORNEY PUBLIC RELEASE MEMORANDUM