(COLORADO SPRINGS) — Signs could be seen and chants could be herd in downtown Colorado Springs on Monday, July 21–followed by comments made during the city’s Law Enforcement Transparency Advisory Committee’s quarterly town hall–all related to the July 5 shooting Downtown that resulted in 26-year-old Alex Martinez-Sarmiento’s death.
“We believe [the Colorado Springs Police Department] had the wrong person, he was running away,” said Brandon Rincon from the Colorado Springs Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (CSAARPR). “He was not a threat to anybody, and he was shot in the back.”
The group is seeking accountability for the shooting, including Christopher Hernandez, who is Martinez-Sarmiento’s best friend.
“We’ve seen too many videos, too many names turn into hashtags, too many lives lost at the hands of people that are supposed to serve and protect us,” Hernandez said.
CSAARPR is wanting an independent investigation outside of the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office’s current one.
“We believe that police can’t police the police,” Rincon said. “So there needs to be somebody else that polices the police.”
The group claims the 911 call released on Sunday by the Colorado Springs Police Department (CSPD) is identifying another person and not Martinez-Sarmiento as the threat in the parking lot along Pikes Peak Avenue. Police say they spotted Martinez-Sarmiento on camera two different times with two different guns.
“An individual matching the initial description provided by the 911 caller, who was also seen in the group that officers had now interacted with twice, was seen on video armed with what appeared to be a rifle,” said Ira Cronin, a Public Information Officer from the Colorado Springs Police Department.
But CSAARPR does not see it that way.
“She said it looked like an M-4,” Rincon said. “She explicitly said it was not a handgun so when she arrived on scene, they essentially profiled this other person.”
Either way, the decision on whether the officer’s actions complied with state law will likely end up in the hands of an attorney, as the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office’s investigation will go to the 4th Judicial District Attorney’s office for a determination on the incident.
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