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The movement is growing, and we hope you can join us Tuesday the 16th, 5:30 PM in front of City Hall. If you haven’t read the Orange Juice Blog’s “What Hector Hernandez’ Neighbors Saw That Night,” which you should, the main points are:
- Officer Jonathan Ferrell shot Hector twice, fatally, for no good reason;
- A few seconds before that, Officer Ferrell released his K9 Rotar onto Hector for no good reason;
- In the tense moments leading up to that, around ten officers were shouting confusing commands at Hector who was trying to comply – there was no leadership;
- And since the incident, the FPD has lied, changed their stories, kept facts and video hidden, and apparently still have Officer Ferrell on the street.
But all that is just Vern talking. Here is the official press release:
COALITION OF OVER TWENTY ORANGE COUNTY ORGANIZATIONS CALLS FOR
JUSTICE FOR HECTOR HERNANDEZ!
AND ACCOUNTABILITY FROM THE FULLERTON POLICE DEPARTMENT
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, MARCH 15TH, 2021
Contact: Bill Brown
714-818-0559
demobill13@yahoo.com
FULLERTON, CA–This Tuesday, March 16th, 2021, at 5:30 pm, before the Fullerton City Council meeting, the Justice for Hector Hernandez! Coalition will be organizing a protest and press conference to address the fact that it has been almost ten months since Officer Jonathan Ferrell of the Fullerton Police Department (FPD) shot and killed Hector Hernandez, yet he has not been fired by the department nor tried by the Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer.
On May 27th, 2020, Officer Ferrell of the FPD carelessly murdered Hector Hernandez. When the officers got the call and arrived at Hector’s front yard, He came out of his home and raised his hands in the air, totally compliant, at which point Officer Ferrell recklessly released his K-9 on Hector and pulled him to the ground. When Hector pulled out his pocket work knife to protect himself, Ferrell ran up to him and fired two rounds into his chest while he was lying on his back, killing him.
“The night that Hector was killed, a little piece of all of us died that night,” says Bill Brown, Hector’s neighbor and long-time friend. He continues, “Fire Officer Ferrell and hold FPD accountable for his reckless act that night, which left two boys without their father.” Over twenty (20) local organizations have come together to co-sponsor a letter to the Fullerton City Council demanding four (4) items from the city, which include firing Officer Ferrell, releasing all video footage from that night, cancelling the contract with Lexipol, and forming a task force to take a hard look at FPD’s budget (which is over 40% of the city’s overall budget) and how funds can be diverted to resources that promote community wellness. Friends, family, neighbors, and community organizations will not stop until justice for Hector has been served and steps have been taken to transform the approach to public safety in Fullerton.
The Protest and press conference will take place at 5:30 pm on Tuesday, March 16th, before the Fullerton City Council meeting, at the historic Fullerton City Hall, 303 W. Commonwealth Ave.
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On a lighter note, here’s a video we just came across from a typical day of Hector’s life, 4 years ago. He was over at a neighbor’s house helping work on the kitchen, but he just had to take a few minutes off to dance with the kids, including his son:
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