Contra Costa Deputies Justified In Fatal 2020 Knightsen Shooting: DA

CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CA — An investigation by the Contra Costa County District Attorney's Office has determined that sheriff's deputies were justified in the 2020 fatal shooting of a domestic violence suspect, prosecutors said.

The investigation determined that deadly force was justified given the circumstances in which deputies shot and killed Eduardo Martinez. The statement reports that no further action will be taken by District Attorney Diana Becton.

According to the District Attorney's Office, deputies responded to a call at about 9:30 a.m. on July 9, 2020, from a woman in the area of Knightsen reporting that her boyfriend, Martinez, had beaten her, bound her wrists, poured gasoline over her and sexually assaulted her. She reportedly told authorities that Martinez was armed and would shoot any law enforcement officers who intervened.

Deputies arrived and, over a standoff lasting nine hours, tried to get him to surrender peacefully. Prosecutors said that Martinez was unresponsive and, at times, threatened suicide.

Following a loud bang from inside the residence where Martinez was barricaded, deputies deployed drones, which found him armed and alive lying in an upstairs bedroom.

After deputies used gas inside the house to get Martinez to come out, he walked out of the house armed with a shotgun.

One officer fired a non-lethal rubber projectile at Martinez, who raised his shotgun and fired toward officers, with some pellets striking two officers, prosecutors said.

Officers returned fire and struck Martinez in the upper torso. He died at the scene.

A copy of the full investigative report is available on the county's website.

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