CERES, Calif. (KCRA) – Body camera video shows the moments a California police officer shoots a fleeing teenager, killing him.
The video was released by the Ceres Police Department Wednesday east of San Francisco. It shows an officer jumping out of his vehicle and immediately firing at Carmen “Spencer” Mendez last year.
The 15-year-old fled, running into an orchard, after leading officers on a high-speed chase.
No audible commands from the officer are heard on the video until after the officer exhausts his magazine.
That’s when we hear, “Get on the ground! Get on the ground!”
The chase started when officers responded to call for someone in a black Lexus brandishing a gun and a report of a hit and run. Both calls matched the vehicle Mendez fled.
At the time, investigators said Mendez was armed with a gun and that detectives found multiple guns inside the car.
Mark Merrin is the Mendez family’s attorney. He said, “He certainly wasn’t turning around pointing anything at anybody. I didn’t see anything in his hand. The officers say they found a gun somewhere in the field, not in the immediate vicinity of Spencer.”
The City of Ceres reached a $2.1 million settlement with Mendez’s family this fall.
The officer was placed on leave last year.
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