VALLEJO, Calif. — A request to move a trial involving Vallejo police shooting and killing a Bay Area man at a protest was denied by a judge on Thursday.
A Vallejo Police officer shot and killed Sean Monterrosa from the back of a police vehicle outside of a Walgreens on June 2 after they believed the hammer he held was a gun. Police were responding to reports of looting after a day of protest against the police killing of George Floyd.
The Vallejo City Attorney's Office officials claimed neither Monterrosa's family nor the city could receive a fair trial in either the Bay Area or Sacramento. They wanted to move the venue to Fresno. At the time, they cited a July 17 tweet from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, where she described the death of Monterrosa as "murder."
"I join Sean’s family & others in calling for an FBI investigation into Sean’s murder, including into the destruction of essential evidence in this homicide case," Pelosi tweeted.
John Burris, a civil rights attorney, is representing Monterrosa's family. He claims moving venues to Fresno did not make sense.
"The court ruled against them because we filed a motion that said it was kind of ridiculous because the Sacramento Northern District is a huge area," Burris said. "Plus, if you move it to Fresno, it's very inconvenient, so it's full steam ahead of us."
