Update: Lawyer for Modesto officer charged with manslaughter says shooting was justified
Modesto announced Thursday that police officer Joseph Lamantia was fired from his job and faces a criminal charge in his December fatal shooting of Trevor Seever, an unarmed 29-year-old whose family had called 911 seeking help.
“The actions of Officer Joseph Lamantia on December 29, 2020, did not meet the high standards our community, our department and I demand of our officers,” interim police Chief Brandon Gillespie said in a news release. “The death of Trevor Seever is a tragedy for his family, friends, and our community.
“The men and women of the Modesto Police Department work hard every day to build and maintain positive relationships. I understand Officer Lamantia’s actions have set us back. Our department is dedicated to serving the public and committed to rebuilding any trust we have lost.”
Gillespie has been with the Modesto Police Department for nearly 20 years, and when asked, said he could not recall another officer who lost his job or was criminally charged in an officer-involved shooting during his time with the department.
Lamantia, 35, had been on paid administrative leave since the shooting. The Police Department could not fire him while it conducted its investigation and he pursued his due process rights.
The Stanislaus County District Attorney’s office charged Lamantia on Thursday with voluntary manslaughter and he appeared in Stanislaus County Superior Court in the afternoon. He pleaded not guilty to the charge. His bail was set at $100,000 and he was taken into custody.
He was no longer listed in custody as of late Thursday afternoon, according to the county’s jail website.
Lamantia is facing three, six or 11 years in prison if convicted, according to the district attorney’s office. His next court date is June 17.
He is represented by the Goyette & Associates law firm. “We strongly believe this was a perfectly justifiable officer involved shooting,” Paul Goyette, the firm’s founder, said in a phone interview.
Goyette said Lamantia acted appropriately based on his Police Department training, the information he was given at the time about Seever and the potential threat Seever posed to others.
While Seever’s family had called 911 on Dec. 29 to report that he said he had bought a gun the night before and that he had made vague threats against his family, Seever was not armed. The family also has disputed how police have characterized Seever and the danger he posed.
And a national use of force expert who reviewed Lamantia’s body camera footage said he found the officer’s actions troubling.
Other options besides shooting
“He should be alert to the (report of the) gun, but the first move should not be to shoot the man, which is what it appears to be,” said Phil Stinson, a professor and criminologist at Ohio’s Bowling Green State University and a former police officer, in a Bee story published in January. Stinson said it was difficult to determine from the footage, but it appears Seever was trying to get away.
Stinson said the officer had other options, including following Seever at a safe distance and telling other officers where the man was heading. He said Lamantia appeared to be 40 to 50 yards from Seever when he opened fire.
Lamantia fired seven shots.
“It’s very difficult to say with one video, but it does not appear the officer faced an imminent threat of serious bodily injury or deadly force,” Stinson said.
The decision to fire Lamantia comes after the Police Department completed an investigation of the shooting. The department’s Use of Force Review Board determined Lamantia’s conduct and use of deadly force violated department policy, procedures and training and recommended his employment be terminated, according to the news release.
Fourth fatal shooting since 2010
Gillespie upheld that recommendation and fired Lamantia on Thursday morning. Lamantia had been a Modesto officer since 2008, and this was his first job in law enforcement. He had been involved in three other fatal officer involved shootings since 2010. Those shootings were determined to be justified and within department policy.
Gillespie declined to say how Lamantia’s conduct and use of force violated department policy, procedures and training. He said the district attorney’s office has asked that information not be revealed in order to protect the criminal case while it is pending.
Seever’s mother and other family members did not respond Thursday to requests for comment. But they and other community members have spoken consistently during public comment at City Council meetings demanding that Lamantia be fired and prosecuted.
There also have been rallies and demonstrations protesting Seever’s death.
The city’s news release states District Attorney Birgit Fladager, Gillespie and Mayor Sue Zwahlen met with Seever’s family before Thursday’s announcement. “We mourn alongside the Seever family and now begin the process of healing our community,” Zwahlen said in the release.
Seever’s family and others also have called for a civilian oversight panel for the Police Department. The news release states Zwahlen has called for an “engagement process to consider the community’s interest in (the) Modesto Police Department’s policies and practices.”
The release states that process includes forming a committee, holding “an initial listening session to hear from the community to outline areas of concern” and that the committee would offer recommendations to the City Council within six to 12 months.
Among the other shootings Lamantia had been involved in:
- In a 2010 incident, a 45-year-old man was shot and killed after officers, including Lamantia, were called to the scene after it was reported Francisco Moran, was intoxicated, belligerent and armed with a knife. He was armed with a metal spatula.
- In 2016, Lamantia was one of the officers involved in the fatal shooting of a suspect during a drug bust in Turlock. The suspect, Omar Villagomez, rammed an undercover vehicle in trying to escape, police said.
- In another 2016 fatal shooting, a woman, Kim Jackson, who police say charged police with knives, was shot and killed by officers, including Lamantia.
- Lamantia also had a part in a nonfatal officer-involved shooting in October when officers opened fire on an armed homicide suspect in Stockton. The suspect, David Cummings Jr., 27, was wanted in a double homicide near downtown Modesto a few days earlier.
This story was originally published March 18, 2021 at 2:51 PM.
