Police Kill Deaf Man

2024 Author: Steven Freeman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 08:15

A police officer who shot and killed a Hispanic man has been placed on administrative leave following the Oklahoma scandal over the death of the deaf victim.

Magdiel Sánchez, 35, was not obeying police orders before one of them shot him and another subdued him with a Taser gun, Oklahoma City Police Sgt. Bo Mathews explained at a news conference.

"In those situations, situations that are very volatile, you take out a weapon, something that they call tunnel vision can happen to you or you can only focus on the person who has the weapon [and] who is the threat against you," Mathews explained in statements collected by the Chicago Tribune. "I don't know exactly what the cops were thinking at the time."

As explained, the police were investigating an alleged run-over in which the driver had fled and that had occurred around 8:15 pm on Tuesday. Witnesses to the incident gave the police an address that upon investigation found Sánchez on the porch of the house.

Lt. Matthew Lindsey said Sanchez began to approach him, carrying a metal tube about two feet long in one hand.

Sergeant Chris Barnes went to his partner's relief and when Sánchez approached the police officers about 15 feet away, they began to shoot him at the screams of the neighbors who according to witnesses said "Don't listen to him!"

Witnesses said that the police instructed Sánchez to stop and that they did not listen when they shouted that the man was deaf.

The victim's father, who had led the road incident, confirmed that his son was deaf. The man also informed police that his son was not with him in the vehicle at the time of the incident and that what he had hit with his car had not been a person.

Julio Rayos, a family neighbor, told The Oklahoman that Sánchez was disabled and could not speak. "We were screaming that he couldn't hear them," Rayos explained. "He makes movements. He does not speak, he does not listen, he only moves his hands. This is how it communicates. I think I was frustrated trying to tell them what was going on."

Jolie Guebara, also a neighbor of the family, explained to the AP the possible reason why Sánchez - who had no criminal record - was loading the tube. "He always carried a stick and walked around with him because there are a lot of stray dogs."

Barnes has now been placed on administrative leave while the incident is investigated. The family says they plan to hire a lawyer.