RIO LINDA, Calif. — The family of a Rio Linda man who was shot and killed by Sacramento County Sheriff's deputies last month said their goodbyes in a candlelight vigil Monday night.
They said he was in the middle of a mental health crisis and shouldn't have been shot. They've hired an attorney to investigate surveillance video of the incident.
The sheriff's office said 38-year-old Christopher Gilmore was advancing toward deputies with a knife. However, his family said he was in the middle of a mental health crisis and the item he had in his hand was a shaving razor that he was only using to harm himself.
While his sister Bobbie Gilmore said Christopher was the comedian of the family, his family said he also had mental health challenges that made him feel alone.
"It didn’t matter how mad or sad you were, he would go to great lengths to make you laugh," said Bobbie. "And then it would go to depression and sometimes suicidal."
It was during one of those episodes on March 23 that family members called 911.
They told dispatch that Christopher was cutting himself with a shaving razor.
Sacramento County Sheriff's deputies responded and, within minutes, Christopher was shot dead.
"I just want my brother’s voice to be heard," said Bobbie.
The Gilmore family hired attorney Daniel Del Rio to investigate video of the entire incident captured by the family's surveillance cameras.
"It’s startling to say the least. It is an absolute tragedy that occurred. The situation is essentially summed up by saying we have a man who has a cry for help, and unfortunately, it's answered with gunshots," said Del Rio.
The sheriff's office said he came out of the garage with a knife. That deputies hit him with several less-lethal rounds before turning to lethal force. They did all they could, but he was advancing with a weapon.
Christopher's family insisted he wasn't a threat.
"Watching my brother die is one of the hardest things I’ll ever have to live with," Bobbie said.
Even as they say their goodbyes, the fight isn't over yet.
The attorney hired by the Gilmore family said he'll release the video this week, potentially as early as tomorrow.
As for the sheriff's office, ABC10 asked for comment on the story, but they said the incident remains under investigation and they stand by everything they said on the day of the incident.
One other thing to note is that the sheriff's office has a mobile crisis unit for mental health calls, but they were not working on the day of the incident. The sheriff's office said they don't have enough counselors to staff it 24/7.
The sheriff's office has 45 days after the incident to release their own body-worn camera video of the incident. That falls in early May.
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