As if it were a bad joke, Cindy Chavez, mother of a man killed in 2017 by a San Jose Police Department officer, received a restraining order from Santa Clara authorities to protect the officer who killed her son.
The temporary restraining order, filed by the San Jose city attorney in September, requires Chavez, 58, to stay at least 300 yards away from San Jose Police Department Sgt. Mike Pina, who fatally shot her son, Jacob Dominguez, in 2017, San José Spotlight reporter Brian Howey reported.
Chavez, he clarified, has no relationship with Supervisor Cindy Chavez, who is running for mayor of San Jose.
“I looked at him and said, ‘Are you serious?’” Chavez told San Jose Spotlight. “My stomach turned. This cop killed my son, and now he wants to do this to me? I don’t even know who he is.”
According to investigations, Pina fatally shot Dominguez during a traffic stop in 2017, believing that the now deceased was looking for a weapon, however, he was unarmed.
According to the local outlet, the Santa Clara County district attorney declined to charge Pina for the shooting, though in August a civil jury found the officer used excessive force when he shot the 33-year-old man and awarded Dominguez's family $1 million. Pina was promoted to sergeant.
The restraining order, obtained by San Jose Spotlight, details that Chavez is prohibited from communicating with Pina's family and from visiting the apartment's property unless he needs police assistance.
The warrant says Chavez “made a credible threat of violence” against Pina and includes five examples of social media posts and other written messages about the now sergeant that the city attorney’s office says threaten him.
However, Chavez said her Facebook comments were not intended to make the officer fear for his life or safety, and that they were those of a grieving and angry mother who had lost her son.
The post, he told the outlet, was intended to convey his wish that the officer would one day understand his anguish, not a threat of violence against the officer.
"I can post things because that's how I feel, but I've never threatened him like I was going to come after him," he said. "I wouldn't put myself in a situation where I'm going to be sitting in jail and my grandchildren are outside."
City attorney Nora Frimann, whose office requested the restraining order, said Chavez's intent was irrelevant.
"A restraining order is neither a criminal action nor a lawsuit, it's a way for the city to protect its employees," he said.
San José Spotlight reached out to the San Jose Police Department, but it declined to comment.
The outlet noted that Chavez intends to fight the restraining order, and his family has begun crowdfunding to pay for legal fees. A court hearing for the restraining order is scheduled for Dec. 13.
With information from San José Spotlight. To see the full note click here.
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