Like His Life Meant Nothing
$30 could've gotten you a new gun from the Hemet Police Department
Below are two stories about police use of force. One is about a policy change, and the other is about a gun raffle. The second piece comes from social media sleuthing and public records. It is the type of independent reporting I want to continue to publish here, but it requires reader support. Share, subscribe, or pitch in $5 a month to make this a reality.
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LAPD officers in use-of-force investigations can get up to 72 hours before being interviewed internally by the department's Force Investigation Division. New reporting from me for LA Public Press goes over what the policy change means and its likely outcomes: more time to craft a story and less accountability for cops.
A tidbit from the piece:
Neither LAPD policy nor state laws give a suspect the right to delay an interview with a police officer for a day or more. Concerns about “officer wellness” aren’t extended to suspects, who may also be fatigued.
Unlike in the LAPD’s disciplinary process, civilians are also not given advance notice of an interrogation to prepare, or a chance to review the body camera footage or investigative facts beforehand. These are privileges not afforded to the public that police, including the LAPD, have afforded themselves.
Like His Life Meant Nothing
For a successful and well-funded raffle, you need a big prize.
For the Hemet Police Department, that prize was a gun—specifically, a Sig Sauer P320 X-Five Legion donated by local firearms dealer Counter-Strike Firearms.
The donated gun was used to raise money to cover their expenses for Baker 2 Vegas, a yearly relay race between police departments from across the country to see who can run from Baker, CA to Las Vegas, NV the fastest. It's put on by the Los Angeles Police Revolver and Athletic Club (LAPRAAC), a police gun club located in Elysian Park.
There’s running, camaraderie, and a participation medal.
Hemet PD's running team raised $4,530 to finish in 104th place.
The department could have chosen something that couldn’t kill people on purpose or accidentally. The donated gun, a Sig Sauer P320, is being dropped by police departments for its alleged ability to fire on its own. Departments across the country are facing criticism for selling them to the public.
Despite the dangers, the department encouraged everyone to participate.
Dylan Werts with the Hemet Police Department said in an email to the department that the raffle was open to everyone, including friends, family, and other non-sworn police officers.
However, there was a bonus for a sworn officer who won. The store would order the off-roster version of the gun with high-capacity magazines and other features that are banned to the general public.
It's one of the perks of being a cop in California.
But for Arienne Duncan, a lifelong friend of Jimmy Lopez, the raffle wasn't a friendly fundraiser. It was a soul-crushing reminder of Jimmy's death at the hands of the Hemet Police Department.
"It’s a slap in the face to every single person who has lost someone to police violence. They’re not just ignoring our grief, they’re mocking it."
Justice for Jimmy
Police were responding to a call of a person with a gun when they found Jimmy sitting on a sidewalk not far from a bar he'd just left.
He was drunk, waiting for his sister to pick him up. He was trying to get home safely.
A minute later, after police arrived, Jimmy was dead. Seventeen rounds hit him as he began to slump over on the sidewalk. The glass behind him shattered by a stream of bullets.
The first evidence released was a video caught on a low-resolution surveillance camera from a nearby store.
In it, Jimmy is seen from a side angle, taking a hit of a vape before he shifts his weight. Police gunfire quickly follows.
The department's edited video also does little to clarify what led to his death. They claim he grabbed the airsoft gun next to him and pointed it at officers. A blurry screenshot and close-ups from the officer's body cameras are the only evidence for their claim.
The department has not released the names of the officers who shot Jimmy that night. They've denied my public records requests for names, recordings, and incident reports. The public will have to wait to know what happened that night beyond the department's public statements.
Records about the raffle were released and are included below:
Jimmy's death is still under investigation, but historically, officers rarely face punishment or criminal charges for their actions.
"Feared for their lives," and qualified immunity is a sufficient defense.
Deadly and dangerous histories
Police shouldn't be in the business of selling guns, let alone giving them away. It's a threat to public safety.
It's a problem so bad that the Department of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms warned police to stop the practice.
According to an investigation by The Trace, since 2006, 52,000 police guns have ended up in the hands of people who've used them in shootings, robberies, and other crimes.
The Los Angeles Police Revolver and Athletic Club, which puts on the race, has gotten into legal trouble after the former manager was caught stealing and selling guns.
Arienne didn't see the donation of an off-roster high-capacity magazine as an act of generosity. To her, it was dangerous and unethical.
"That’s arming officers with histories of excessive force while families like mine are left to bury our loved ones," she said.
Four hundred eighty-five families and friends have buried loved ones so far this year. Shooting deaths by California police are on the rise compared to last year. Year to date, they've killed 17 more people than last year.
Now there is another gun on the street. At a minimum, a thirty-dollar deadly weapon used to fund Hemet PD's running vacation in the desert.
Jimmy, in Arienne's words:
"He was my heart. My safe place. He was kind, humble, adventurous, respectful, and full of life and love. The kind of man who lit up a room just by walking into it. His loss shattered me and everyone who loved him."
You can follow their fight for justice on Instagram: @justiceforjimmylopez
If you appreciated this story or any of my other work, you can buy me a coffee, a Diet Coke, or cover a handful of public records requests.
