Antonio Zambrano-Montes, 35, an out-of-work orchard worker from
Mexico's Michoacan state, was shot and killed in the city of Pasco
in Washington's agricultural heartland after he pelted police with
rocks and then fled, in a confrontation captured on video.
His death sparked protests by demonstrators who accused police in
Pasco of overly aggressive tactics in dealing with the Hispanic
community and who likened the shooting to two high-profile police
killings of unarmed black men in Ferguson, Missouri, and in New York
City.
"He suffered from mental illness," Felix Vargas, chairman of Consejo
Latino, said of Zambrano Montes. "They were screaming at him in a
language he didn't understand. It heightened tensions."
Vargas said his group planned to work with the American Civil
Liberties Union and mental health experts to draft guidelines
helping police compassionately interact with immigrants.
The so-called "Zambrano protocol" will provide guidance on
de-escalating conflicts with those who speak little or no English,
Vargas said, adding he expected to present guidelines to authorities
in coming weeks.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2015/Feb/21/images/ads/current/humanesociety_sda022411.png) Pasco Police Chief Bob Metzger said he was unaware of the guidelines
but said the department "is always open to reviewing anything that
can assist us. Anything that our community wants from us we will
give serious consideration."
Police said officers opened fire after Zambrano-Montes ignored
commands to surrender and a stun gun failed to subdue him.
Investigators are examining whether Zambrano-Montes spoke English
well enough to comply with officers' orders, and whether the
officers involved gave him commands in Spanish, said Kennewick
Police Sergeant Ken Lattin, a spokesman for a special unit
investigating the incident.
"He clearly committed a felony, both the malicious mischief to other
vehicles and then assaulting a police officer," Lattin said of
Zambrano-Montes. "But the totality of what occurred is still what we
are trying to investigate."
None of the three officers involved, one of whom is of Hispanic
background, was "certified" through a city process as a Spanish
speaker, he said.
CONCERN BY MEXICO
The Mexican government has condemned the shooting as a
disproportionate use of lethal force. On Friday, Mexico sent its
consul in Seattle to meet with the Franklin County prosecutor who
briefed him on the investigation.
Earlier the county coroner ordered an inquest into the slaying.
Prosecutors will then decide whether to pursue charges. The officers
involved in the shooting have been placed on leave.
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The family of Zambrano-Montes has also asked for an independent
autopsy.
"It seemed as if it was something like a racist act," Pedro Farias,
Zambrano-Montes's 32-year-old cousin, said. "They would have thought
about it a bit more if it had been someone 'American.' Everyone
should be seen the same."
The killing marked the fourth fatal police shooting in six months in
a community of 68,000 residents that is more than half Hispanic but
whose police force is disproportionately white. Details of the other
shootings were not immediately available.
Of 60 Pasco police sergeants and officers, 15 are Hispanic and 43
are white, Metzger said. Twelve police officers speak Spanish. The
city's lone Hispanic city council member, Saul Martinez, did not
respond to interview requests.
"The city needs to study itself psychologically in the case of the
police," said Steven Flores Garcia, a 32-year-old apple orchard
worker. "Because, for me, they're missing a psychological element."
The ACLU did not immediately respond to request for comment on the
guidelines.
Pasco settled a 2012 lawsuit for $100,000 brought by a woman who
said her face was shoved against a patrol car and her arms twisted
behind her by two officers, one of whom, Ryan Flanagan, was involved
in Zambrano-Montes' death, her lawyer said, adding: She repeatedly
denied an interpreter and mocked.
(Reporting by Eric M. Johnson from Pasco, Washington; Additional
reporting by Dan Wallis in Denver; Editing by Ken Wills)
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