The preliminary examination of a person accused of making an attempt to homicide a Vallejo police officer started Tuesday.
The listening to, which was scheduled to final for 2 days, is supposed to find out whether or not sufficient proof exists to take the case to trial. However many questions Tuesday centered extra on the actions of Officer Brad Kim than on Jamazea Kittell, who allegedly tried to kill him.
Below questioning from Public Defender Nick Filloy, Kim testified that he was outnumbered and in concern for his security from the second he arrived at a Springs Street gasoline station round 4:12 a.m. June 27. Kim mentioned he shot Kittell in an try and cease the suspect from operating him over and doubtlessly killing him – however expressed uncertainty over how a bullet gap appeared in one of many rear doorways of Kittell’s automobile.
Kim additionally testified that one in every of his personal automobile’s cameras didn’t activate that morning due to a technical malfunction.
Decide Robert Bowers frowned deeply and sustained a number of objections to Filloy’s flurry of questions. Kittell, who acquired stitches round his nostrils after the incident, watched the proceedings carrying a jail uniform and inexperienced beanie.
Physique digital camera footage uploaded by the Vallejo Police Division reveals Kim arriving on the gasoline station in query and scrambling out of his squad automobile. The officer arrived alone and mentioned he witnessed “at the very least three to 4 folks” fleeing the enterprise.
“I used to be extra centered on security, on fears of some sort of retaliation or some sort of motion from the group to make sure that they received away,” Kim informed the courtroom.
Recognizing a Dodge Charger, which is quicker than Kim’s personal Ford Explorer, the officer mentioned his preliminary plan was to park his automobile bumper to bumper with the automobile to forestall anybody from driving off. However out of concern for the protection of suspects operating in entrance of him, Kim mentioned he screeched to a cease about six toes away from the Charger.
Then, hoping to catch suspects but additionally apprehensive about being “a sitting duck” who might be shot if he remained in his automobile, Kim jumped out and drew his firearm.
“The entire function of being a police officer isn’t to jot down a complete bunch of stories in your 10, 12 hour shifts,” the officer testified. “It’s to be able to catch dangerous guys doing dangerous issues to good folks.”
Kim noticed a suspect later recognized as Kittell moving into the Charger and he ran in entrance of the automobile.
“As I used to be going round,” he testified, “I felt the automobile lunge towards me.”
Kim shot Kittell by way of the automobile’s windshield within the “break up second” between Kim’s torso collapsing onto the hood of the automobile and him falling onto the bottom. “The one factor I considered was, ‘I must cease the motive force from working the automobile,” he mentioned.
However pictures of the Dodge Charger reveal two bullet holes: One within the windshield and one other within the driver’s facet passenger door.
“As quickly as I turned conscious that the automobile was now not an ideal risk, I ended firing,” Kim testified. Below questioning he later added, “The motive force’s facet rear door could have been mine. I’m not likely certain.”
The officer mentioned one of many automobile’s rear home windows was lined with a plastic bag, which might imply the automobile had been in one other capturing.
Kim testified to 2 technical malfunctions the morning of the incident – one in every of which prevented him from broadcasting that there had been an officer-involved capturing, and the opposite of which stopped one in every of his automobile’s cameras from working correctly.
He mentioned he believed he’d broadcasted phrase of the capturing till the watch commander appeared stunned when he talked about it later that morning. The issue with the digital camera, in the meantime, reportedly occurred as a result of Kim flipped a change too shortly.
“I assume they put in it in a approach that didn’t work. I’m not likely certain,” he mentioned.
Kittell’s preliminary examination will proceed Oct. 3.
This text has been up to date to mirror the truth that the second day of Kittell’s preliminary examination was postponed to October.
