Death of Mario Gonzalez

On April 19, 2021, Mario Gonzalez, an unarmed 26-year-old Latino man, died while under police custody by the Alameda, California Police Department.

In their initial report of the incident, the department reported that Gonzalez died after a "scuffle" and "physical altercation" resulting in a "medical emergency."

The Gonzalez family's attorney called the police's descriptions of his death "misinformation."

In body cam footage released on April 27, Gonzalez could be seen being pinned to the ground for more than five minutes while officers stated, "Please stop resisting us."

At one point, Gonzalez told the officers, "Please don't do this to me," before eventually becoming unresponsive.

He was later pronounced dead at a hospital.

His death was ruled a homicide.

Mario Arenales Gonzalez (December 24, 1994 – April 19, 2021) was a 26-year-old man from Oakland, California.

He was a father and was the primary caretaker of his mother and brother, who has autism.

He worked as a chef and construction worker.

The officers involved with Gonzalez's death were identified as Eric McKinley, who has been on the force for three years, Cameron Leahy, who has been on the force for three years, and James Fisher, who has been on the force for 10 years.

The three men have been placed on paid administrative leave.

Officer McKinley approached Gonzalez at a park after police said they were responding to reports of a man who was believed to be intoxicated and suspected of theft.

Audio from the 9-1-1 call showed the complaint stated Gonzalez was "not doing anything wrong" but "just scaring my wife."

Gonzalez was in the park with two Walgreens baskets and two open alcohol bottles.

He spoke with the officers calmly before they requested his identification,

which he did not or could not produce.

An officer said, "Please put your hand behind your back... please stop resisting us."

The officers pushed Gonzalez facedown into mulch, placing a knee on his back and holding him down with their arms for four minutes as Gonzalez gasped for air and said, "I didn't do nothing" and "Please don't do this."

One officer said they "have no weight on his chest."

Gonzalez lost consciousness, at which point the officers rolled him over, performed CPR, and delivered Narcan.

He was pronounced dead later in hospital.

The incident is under investigation by the Alameda County Sheriff's Department, the Alameda County district attorney's office, and Louise Renne, a former San Francisco city attorney, who was hired to conduct an independent investigation.

City officials stated they are "committed to full transparency and accountability in the aftermath of Mr. Gonzalez's death."

Alameda's interim police chief stated it was unclear whether officers used justifiable action, or excessive force and that the investigation was ongoing.

Both the Gonzalez family's attorney and the department stated they were waiting for the autopsy and toxicology reports.

On May 7, the Alameda County Sheriff’s office requested outside agencies to assist in reviewing Gonzalez autopsy, citing the need for "public trust."

An autopsy report was issued on December 10, 2021, naming Gonzalez's death a homicide, with methamphetamine toxicity as the leading cause.

Attorneys for his family dispute this, stating that Gonzalez would not have died were it not for being restrained in a prone position, with multiple officers on his back, for over five minutes.

On April 30, the Gonzalez family's lawyer announced the family would be filing a civil rights lawsuit against the Alameda Police Department.

The family stated Gonzalez complied with the officers, and the actions of the police violated his rights.

On April 30, the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland asking for an FBI investigation.

LULAC president Domingo Garcia wrote, "We understand that the Alameda County Sheriff, the Alameda County District Attorney, and the City of Alameda are conducting independent investigations. We expect that those investigations will focus on the Use of Force by those officers in a criminal context. This is a request for an investigation into whether Mr. Gonzalez’ Civil Rights were violated by these officers. In the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder and in consideration of the Georgia Sheriff who was recently indicted April 27, 2021 on use of unreasonable force found in an FBI Civil Rights Violation investigation. We urge you to complete an investigation into the matter of Mario Gonzalez as soon as practicable.”

Gonzalez's brother stated, "Everything we saw in that video was unnecessary and unprofessional. The police killed my brother in the same manner that they killed George Floyd."

Gonzalez's mother said, "He's a lovely guy. He's respectful, all the time. They broke my family for no reason."

The family also blamed the police for Gonzalez's death, saying the "police escalated what should have been a minor, peaceful encounter" with an unarmed man.

Julia Sherwin, a lawyer representing the Gonzalez family, stated, "His death was completely avoidable and unnecessary. Drunk guy in a park doesn't equal a capital sentence."

Protests occurred in Alameda, where activists marched in the same neighborhood where Gonzalez died.

The group of activists hoped to “wake up” the neighborhood and demand "white people stop calling the police on Black and brown people."

Activists released a statement saying, "Your irrational fear — which is truly about power, control, and domination — stole Mario’s life from his son, his brothers, his mother."