RIVERSIDE, Calif., Jan. 10 (UPI) -- Relatives of a Riverside, Calif., man said police used excessive force when they fatally shot him while responding to a domestic violence dispute at his home.
Family members said they heard at least 12 shots fired by police Saturday before David Hernandez Ledezma, 52, fell to the ground bleeding from his abdomen and leg outside the home, The (Riverside) Press-Enterprise reported.
Ledezma's niece, Yvonne DeLaCruz, called police about 4 p.m. to report her uncle had hit his wife, was acting belligerent and had been drinking but was not armed.
Police said Ledezma was throwing tools in the back yard, was angry and uncooperative and held the blade of a pocket knife to his own neck, threatening to stab himself. He dropped the knife when police told him to do so, then picked up a large metal pipe and threw it at officers, who moved to avoid being hit, police said Monday in a news release.
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After being shocked by police with a stun gun, Ledezma picked up another large pipe and hit at objects in the yard before raising it over his shoulder and moving toward officers.
Police said three officers, fearing for their safety, fired their weapons at Ledezma.
Ledezma's daughter, Yvette, said her father told police he wasn't going to jail because he did nothing wrong.
She said her father had late-stage cirrhosis of the liver from alcohol addiction and feared enduring withdrawal if he were incarcerated. She said her father was unemployed and depressed.
The Press-Enterprise said Ledezma had served time in 1993 for battery and in 2002 for domestic violence.
