The San Francisco Police Department released body camera footage Friday, showing the events leading up to a deadly police shooting in the city's Richmond District last week.
In a town hall meeting Friday, police said Officer Eduardo Villanueva from the Richmond district station shot and killed Marc Child, 37, on June 22 after receiving a 911 call that a man's son had killed his wife and dog in their house in the 700 block of 31st Avenue.
At the town hall, police described the events leading up to the shooting and shared dispatch audio and videos from multiple officers' body cameras and crime scene photos before hearing public comment.
Police Chief Bill Scott said the department wouldn't draw conclusions as to whether the shooting abided by their use of force standards until investigations are complete. He added that images shown were not the entirety of what is being looked at in the investigations.
While most public commenters called in to thank the officers and call for more police funding, several people questioned the extent that the officer used de-escalation tactics, and what alternatives there were in the situation.
What happened leading up to the shooting
According to dispatch audio, the 911 caller, an 84-year-old man, said his son had hit his wife, 76, with a walking stick and there was "blood everywhere." The man said his son was "on drugs," corroborated by narcotics rolled in a dollar bill that police found after the shooting.
Dispatch audio picked up the sound of a dog yelping in the background.
Villanueva arrived one minute and 50 seconds after the call was dispatched, at 2:39 a.m. The 911 caller was standing in the doorway, bleeding on the side of his face as the officer arrived. He told him, "He has walking sticks." The man survived his injuries.
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Acting Cmdr. Mark Im described scenes from the shooting before playing body camera footage.
The videos depicted Villanueva going up the stairs to Child yelling, "Police" with his gun raised and Child responds, "Come on up, b------."
He stops at the end of a hallway, where blood marks the floor. Child stood at the opposite end of the hall with his right hand exposed and his left hand behind a doorway, ignoring Villanueva's demand to show his hands and get down.
Child begins walking toward Villanueva, revealing a 3.75-inch knife in his left hand. He switches it over to his right hand as he approaches Villanueva.
"I'm not scared of you," Child said.
The officer began walking downstairs to distance himself from Child, telling Child's father to get back.
"Get back or I'll shoot you dude," Villanueva told Child.
It took seven seconds from the top of the stairs to the bottom, and Villanueva guided the father out the front door as he guarded the doorway.
From outside the front door, Villanueva fired two shots at Child. This was 11 seconds from when Villanueva was at the top of the stairs.
Backup arrived at 2:44 a.m., about five minutes after the first officer was dispatched.
Child, inside the front door, bent over at his waist and sunk into a squatted position, Im described. He then lied down on his right side, with his back facing the officers. He continued to hold the knife.
The officers repeatedly asked Child to drop the knife, show his hands and roll over to face them so they could give medical aid.
"Drop the knife. Hey, I need you to roll back over I need to see your hands. Hey, man, I'm trying to help you, man. Let me see your hands. I'm trying to help you," an officer said.
About one minute and 44 seconds after being shot, Child let go of the knife and left it within an arm's reach.
Body camera footage showed how officers discussed their plan for approaching Child. The officers used a ballistic shield to move forward and begin providing medical aid about three minutes and 11 seconds after he was shot. One officer treated him as another began asking him what had happened.
Child suffered one gunshot wound to his chest and was taken to a hospital, where he died.
Footage that had been blurred for the victim's privacy showed an officer checking the rest of the house and finding the wife on the floor, confirming there was no pulse.
An eyewitness was interviewed by San Francisco police and the District Attorney's Independent Investigations Bureau.
"I like to express my deepest condolences to Mr. Child's surviving family members for the tragedy they've experienced," Scott said at the beginning of the town hall. "In the San Francisco Police Department, we recognize that our sworn duty as law enforcement officers imposes no more solemn obligation on us and to honor and respect the sanctity of human life. We also know that as police officers, we are sometimes required to use force, including deadly force at times, in the performance of our duties."
Residents question use of force
Prior to detailing the crime scene, Scott outlined training Villanueva had received, including crisis intervention training in 2019, a 40-hour course. This included de-escalation tactics such as moving positions and creating distance, as well as establishing rapport.
Scott did not conclude whether Villanueva met de-escalation standards as the shooting is still under multiple, independent investigations. He also declined to disclose whether Villanueva had been the subject of other use of force investigations beforehand.
In public comment, one resident asked what de-escalation methods had been used. Scott said Villanueva attempted to create space between him and Child and suggested rewatching the body camera footage but declined to comment further.
Some argued that Villanueva yelling at Child as he entered only escalated the situation. Additionally, there was already distance between Villanueva and Child when he shot at him.
"The officer really did not engage in any kind of constructive de-escalation, but handled this in a very precipitous manner, with the most dire consequences for the young man who is now dead. And the only surviving member of his family is his 84-year-old father," another public commenter said.
Jasper Mather, previously a social worker with the San Francisco Department of Public Health, said in public comment that since Child was inebriated, Villanueva did the best he could.
However, he asked Scott whether there will be any efforts made to prioritize less-lethal force such as a Taser stun gun or pepper spray. Scott said an officer came with a less-lethal force option, but the shooting had already occurred.
When asked about increasing mental health training for officers, Scott said their training on responding to mental health-related calls is "ongoing."
Richmond Police Station Capt. Chris Canning said the shooting is believed to be isolated and there are no other known public safety concerns related to it.
Any witnesses are asked to contact the San Francisco District Attorney's Independent Investigations Bureau at (628) 652-4411.
