On Thursday, February 22, 2018, at approximately 11:08 a.m., the Sacramento Police Department (SPD) received multiple calls of a subject walking with a knife in the area of Elvas Avenue and J Street.

Officers arrived in the area and were originally unable to locate the subject described by callers. Officers remained in the area, locating the subject at Elvas Avenue and 63rd Street. The male subject was detained by officers and found to have a knife in his possession. He was identified as 33-year old Juan Heras-Castro. He was cuffed and placed in the back of a marked police vehicle. Once detained, Mr. Castro was calm and cooperative.

After some initial questioning SPD officers recognized that Mr. Castro may be suffering from a mental health crisis. Castro was transported to Mercy General Hospital in the 4100 block of J Street for an evaluation by medical staff. Due to his calm demeanor, Castro was not detained in handcuffs.

As medical staff began to evaluate Castro he suddenly ran out of the hospital, across the parking lot and into a residential neighborhood. The officer pursued Castro on foot, catching-up to him in the area of 39th/ H Streets. Mr. Castro stopped running and became physically combative toward the officer. During the struggle, Mr. Castro was able to remove the officers’ handgun from the holster. Mr. Castro had control of the weapon with his finger on the trigger. The officer attempted to regain control of the weapon, as he feared that Mr. Castro was going to shoot and kill him.

The officer was able to trap the weapon against the ground but could not regain control. During the struggle, Mr. Castro fired the weapon three (3) times. An off-duty fire fighter was driving by and saw the altercation. He immediately assisted the officer and together they were able to regain control of the weapon and take Mr. Castro into custody.

Please follow the link below to view the original press release https://www.sacpd.org/newsroom/releases/liveview.aspx?release_id=20180222-017

The Sacramento Police Department (SPD) recognizes the significance of this incident and the impact it has on our community. The danger posed to the officer and our community during this incident was significant and unacceptable. We are grateful that no one was seriously injured. 

Today SPD will release video and audio material related to this incident. The material consists of one (1) body-worn camera video and seven (7) audio files. The body worn camera video begins during Mr. Castro’s evaluation at the hospital, just prior to him fleeing. The audio files include the two original 911 calls describing Mr. Castro with a knife, five 911 calls as Mr. Castro and the SPD officer are fighting for control of the handgun, and portions of the dispatch radio traffic.

All video and audio that will be released has been redacted to ensure the confidentiality and privacy of those involved. The faces have been blurred and audio redactions are signified by muted audio with no accompanying sound. Spanish is spoken during the incident; therefore, subtitles have been added to the video to assist the viewer with translation. Unintelligible dialogue is signified by question marks.

The release of this material is done at the discretion of the Chief of Police to inform our community on the complex, difficult and sometimes dangerous job of our police officers. Furthermore, it highlights the difficulties that can be associated with responding to people in crisis in our community. This incident does not fall under the City Council policy on Police Use of Force.

We would like to thank all the citizens, particularly the off-duty firefighter, for the assistance they provided to the officer during this violent confrontation. Your quick thinking and action changed the course of this encounter, saving our officer, Mr. Castro and our community from further harm. 

The material is now available to the media and citizens through the YouTube links below which will also be posted on the Department’s website, Facebook page and Twitter account (@sacpolice)

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLR0Wtq8JGPQYnE9COa7EC-c4-QiXFvozy