Families of 2 shot by officers have differing views on new Modesto police oversight effort

John Holland
·4 min read
30

A law firm will monitor the Modesto Police Department over the next five years, aided by a volunteer board. The actions taken by the City Council quickly drew support and criticism from two Modesto families that lost members in officer-involved shootings.

The council voted 7-0 Tuesday night for a $451,000 contract with the OIR Group, based in Los Angeles. It specializes in independent reviews of law-enforcement agencies.

The council voted by the same margin to create the Community Police Oversight Board and appoint its nine members. It will hold its first monthly meeting June 15.

The moves grew out of concern about officer-involved shootings and related issues in recent years. The firm will review complaints about officer conduct, internal probes of use-of-force incidents, and other matters.

Before the votes, the council heard protests from several residents about the shooting death of Paul Chavez Jr. last July. The Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office found the shooting by Officer Sam Muncy to be justified.

The deceased man’s wife, Brittoni Estrella, told the council over Zoom that the oversight plan will not help. She said he was under emotional stress but not a threat to officers when he was shot at his home off East Orangeburg Avenue.

Body camera footage from police shows Chavez carrying a trailer hitch and the officers telling him several times to put it down or he will be Tased. He did not comply and first was Tased and then shot.

“My husband wasn’t acting erratic,” Estrella said. “He wasn’t being crazy. The video shows everything. It is so sad that this is getting dismissed over and over and over again and nobody will do anything about it.”

Chavez family members have spoken at numerous council meetings since the shooting. They also have filed a lawsuit against the city.

The family of Trevor Seever from the left, brother and sister, Kyle and Allison Seever, mother and stepfather Darlene and Ray Ruiz in Modesto, Calif., Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2021. Trevor was fatally shot by a Modesto police officer on Dec. 29, he was not armed, the department said in a video released Tuesday night.
The family of Trevor Seever from the left, brother and sister, Kyle and Allison Seever, mother and stepfather Darlene and Ray Ruiz in Modesto, Calif., Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2021. Trevor was fatally shot by a Modesto police officer on Dec. 29, he was not armed, the department said in a video released Tuesday night.

Support from grieving mother

The council heard support from Darlene Ruiz, whose son, Trevor Seever, was shot to death in 2020 outside a Woodland Avenue church. Officer Joseph Lamantia was fired and is being prosecuted for voluntary manslaughter. The family settled its own lawsuit against the city for $7.5 million in April.

Loved ones said Seever was mentally unstable but did not threaten Lamantia before the shooting. His mother has been involved with the police oversight effort, which includes having clinicians rather than cops handle some calls.

“I see change happening,” Ruiz said over Zoom. “Maybe some don’t, but I really do see it, and I appreciate all of you trying to bring change into our community. Nothing will ever bring Trevor back to us, but we truly hope and pray to stop another family enduring the horrific nightmare of police brutality.”

The plan grew out of a report last year from the Forward Together Committee. Its 23 members came from business, civil rights and other interests.

The law firm will have access to internal documents and issue public reports to the extent allowed by laws on officer privacy. It also could recommend changes to police policy, including the use of force. It will leave specific cases of officer discipline to police management.

OIR has worked with about 30 agencies, including the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office and the police departments in Santa Cruz, West Sacramento, Santa Rosa, Palo Alto, Anaheim and Burbank.

Diverse board members

The new board includes:

  • Latricia Beasley Day, community organizer for Faith in the Valley

  • Kenneth Bryant, retired battalion chief with the Modesto Fire Department

  • Wendy Byrd, president of the NAACP Modesto/Stanislaus

  • Trish Christensen, president and CEO of the Modesto Chamber of Commerce

  • Frank Damrell III, director of government relations for Peer & Co. and aide to former state Sen. Cathleen Galgiani

  • Austin Grant, active with the NAACP and other groups

  • Brad Hawn, civil engineer and former city councilman involved in housing issues

  • Nancy Smith, retired attorney, including California Rural Legal Assistance and the county public defender’s office

  • Nico Solorio, emergency rental assistance manager for City Ministry Network.

The terms will run through 2027 for Beasley Day, Bryant, Damrell, Grant and Solorio. The others will serve through 2028.

They will meet at 5 p.m. on the third Thursday of every month, open to the public. The location for the first meeting has not been announced.

Five of the nine members also served on the Forward Together: Byrd, Christensen, Grant, Hawn and Solorio.