Video: No Charges for Deputy in Shooting of Teen with Fake Gun
No criminal charges will be filed against a Sonoma County, Calif., sheriff's deputy who shot and killed 13-year-old Andy Lopez last year as the boy walked down the street carrying an airsoft BB gun that resembled an AK-47 rifle. Area residents protested the decision.
No criminal charges will be filed against a Sonoma County, Calif., sheriff's deputy who shot and killed 13-year-old Andy Lopez last year as the boy walked down the street carrying an airsoft BB gun that resembled an AK-47 rifle, District Attorney Jill Ravitch announced Monday.
Calling the Oct. 22 shooting and community upheaval that has followed a "painful, painful chapter in the history of Sonoma County," Ravitch said her office found that Deputy Erick Gelhaus acted within the law when he shot Lopez, reports the Press Democrat.
"While this was absolutely a tragedy, it was not a criminal act," Ravitch said.
In announcing her decision, Ravitch released a 52-page summary of her findings that includes several new details about the shooting, including that Lopez was likely high on marijuana at the time he was killed.
The decision once again fueled anger and frustration among Lopez supporters and activists, with many vowing to take to the streets in protest just as they did in the weeks that followed the shooting.
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