Twenty-five-year-old Manuel Diaz was hanging out in Anaheim on a sunny Saturday last July when two officers began to approach him. Diaz ran off, and Anaheim police officers Nick Bennallack and Brett Heitman pursued him. Moments later, Bennallack shot and killed Diaz\u2014who was unarmed\u2014on an apartment complex lawn. This week, the Orange County District Attorney\u2019s office ruled that the shooting was justified.<\/p>\n
Video taken immediately after the shooting is chilling. One bystander frustratingly screams out, \u201cHe\u2019s still alive! Call the cops!\u201d Officers on the scene appear confused and frantic, and eager to push back the growing crowd\u2014but never once check Diaz\u2019s vitals. Another bystander\u2019s voice is heard in Spanish, encouraging witnesses to capture what\u2019s happening on video by reminding them that \u201cThe law allows you to tape [officers].\u201d<\/p>\n
That video sparked outrage last year, as residents took to the streets in protest. Those demonstration were met with increasing violence from Anaheim police\u2014who used K9 dogs and fired beanbag bullets at dangerously short ranges against not only men and women, but against toddlers as well.<\/p>\n