Protests spark following shooting death of homeless man in San Clemente
SAN CLEMENTE, Calif. - Protesters rallied in front of the San Clemente hotel where 42-year-old Kurt Reinhold was shot to death by Orange County Sheriff Deputies Wednesday afternoon.
The officers, who are members of the Department’s Homeless Outreach Team, say they tried to stop the African American homeless man from walking in the middle of busy El Camino Real.
They ushered him to the sidewalk and tried to make contact, but after a couple of angry exchanges, the deputies tried to subdue the man.
Surveillance and phone video show a struggle and OC Sheriff Investigators, in a photo of one of the videos, have outlined the point where they say Reinhold tried to grab one of the officer’s gun. The other deputy fired two shots killing the homeless man.
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Reinhold’s family provided a photo of him through community activist Najee Ali, who says they are outraged. Their question being - why would the officers try to subdue the man once he was off the street and obviously upset.
OC Sheriff Barnes says the deputies in the Outreach Team are trained on de-escalation techniques, but would not comment on the specific incident.
The OC District Attorney issued a statement saying they are investigating the shooting but that it may take time since toxicology tests have to be performed and the results are not quick.
At the hotel and the Sheriff San Clemente substation, protesters faced off with counter protesters. By late afternoon Thursday, at least five people had been detained, mostly for disorderly conduct, and one for vandalizing a police vehicle.