Sunnyvale officer who shot and killed naked man with knife did so lawfully, DA says

Yahoo

21-02-2025

(KRON) — A Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety officer who shot and killed a half-naked 19-year-old man rushing at him with a knife last year did so lawfully, according to a report from the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office. In the initial incident, police responded to a 911 call on March 23 last year reporting a man walking around with a knife.
The caller, it turned out was the man with the knife, identified as Emmanuel Perez-Becerra, 19. He was wearing only a shirt at the time and was naked from the waist down.
Officers responded to the scene at the intersection of Calle Alicia and Calle Anita. Initially, the officer remained in his vehicle and ordered the subject to drop the knife using the vehicle's PA system.
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Perez-Becerra, the DA said, ignored this and kept walking north on Calle Alicia. The officer exited his vehicle, drew his firearm and pointed it at Perez-Becerra, again ordering him to 'Drop the knife.'
Perez-Becerra refused orders from the officers to drop the knife. He also ignored a warning that he would be shot, the DA said. Officers tried to avoid the use of force by maintaining a safe distance from the subject.
However, Perez-Becerra rapidly advanced toward Sunnyvale DPS officer Kevin Lemos, the DA said. Lemos fired two rounds from his department-issued sidearm. Both rounds struck the subject in the chest, killing him.
'This incident is unquestionably heartbreaking for both the officer and the decedent's family,' read a report from Deputy DA Rob Baker. 'The evidence strongly suggests that Perez-Becerra may have committed 'suicide by cop' due to a years-long battle with depression and schizophrenia. His own actions and behavior, however, placed Officer Lemos in the unfortunate situation that left him, in the words of an independent bystander, 'no choice' but to use lethal force.'
In the report, Officer Lemos explained that he followed Perez-Becerra to 'keep eyes' on him, believing he was a danger to the public, based on the day and time, the officer said, it would have been common for adults and children to be out and about in the area.
An autopsy report on Perez-Becerra, the DA said, noted he had been diagnosed with depression and schizophrenia following six years of suicidal ideation. He had been subjected to both voluntary and involuntary Emergency Psychiatric Services holds at least twice in the year leading up to the shooting.
Last month, Perez-Becerra's family filed a federal civil rights lawsuit in connection to the shooting. His parents and their lawyers maintain that officers did not follow protocol and that using a firearm on the 19-year-old should have been a last resort.
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