An ex-Los Angeles police officer was arrested Monday for allegedly fatally shooting a 32-year-old disabled man at a Costco in Southern California in 2019.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced that officer Salvador Sanchez was charged for voluntary manslaughter and assault with a semiautomatic firearm in a press release.
“Where there’s reason to believe a crime has been committed, we will seek justice,” said Attorney General Bonta in the news release. “That’s exactly what these charges are about: pursuing justice after an independent and thorough review of the evidence and the law. Ultimately, any loss of life is a tragedy, and is licensed to carry a gun doesn’t mean you're not accountable for how you use it. No matter who you are, nobody is above the law.”
According to the Associated Press, Officer Sanchez was inside a Costco in Corona when Kenneth French attacked Sanchez from behind, knocking him to the ground. In the shooting, Sanchez quickly opened fire, fatally wounding French and critically wounding French's parents, Russell and Paola.
NBC News reported that Kenneth's family described their son as nonverbal and may have pushed Sanchez.
The AP reported that Sanchez was terminated in July 2020 from the LAPD.
In September 2019, the AP reported that Sanchez was not criminally charged by the Riverside County district attorney, who declined to charge him after a grand jury did not bring an indictment.