CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — A Nueces County grand jury has decided not to indict a Corpus Christi Police Department officer accused of shooting a young man during a search for robbery suspects in March of this year.
The injured man, 23-year-old Richard Salazar was completely innocent, but the officer reportedly believed Salazar had a gun in his hand. It turned out to be a lighter.
On Monday, the Nueces County District Attorney's Office released a 46-page report detailing the circumstances regarding the case -- information that ultimately led to the grand jury's no-bill decision.
District Attorney Mark Gonzalez announced Monday the grand jury's decision not to indict Senior Officer Gilbert Cantu in the shooting of Salazar.
"12 citizens from the community decided that, in this case, force was justified, and in this case there was no criminal law applicable," Gonzalez said.
According to the report, the shooting happened back on March 26 following two armed robberies. Senior Officer Cantu and Officer Jacqueline Deleon were looking for the robbery suspects near the 200 block of Torreon Street when they discovered Salazar.
The report states that Salazar was asleep on a couch in his carport, having just finished smoking synthetic marijuana. It also states that officers asked to see his hands and that Salazar was not being compliant.
Officer Cantu, observing Salazar to have an object in his hands, mistook the object -- a lighter -- for a weapon and immediately shot six times, hitting him with four bullets. Cantu expressed that he feared his partner would be hurt.
It turned out Salazar was not involved in the robbery.
"From the moment we received a file in our office from law enforcement, we analyzed and reviewed the evidence with even greater scrutiny than we would any file alleging actions by a non law enforcement citizen because we are acutely aware of the optics surrounding such cases," said First Assistant District Attorney Matt Manning.
"We respect the process the grand jury provides our community," CCPD Lt. Michael Pena said. "The grand jury is comprised of our community members, so we by all means respect the outcome no matter which way it went."
The officers are both back on the job after being placed on administrative leave following the shooting. Officer Deleon returned to duty shortly after the incident. Senior Officer Cantu just returned June 28, one day after the grand jury's decision.
You can take a look at the full 46-page report here.