The Contra Costa County Sheriff on Wednesday released never-before-seen video footage of a deadly officer-involved shooting in Danville last month.
The video came as Contra Costa County District Attorney Diane Becton separately announced felony charges against the very same Danville Police officer, Andrew Hall, in connection with a 2018 shooting that left a man dead.
The video of the March 11 incident, which shows different angles of the altercation between Hall and 32-year-old Tyrell Wilson at Sycamore Valley Rd. and Camino Ramon in Danville, contains graphic language and may be disturbing for some viewers.
"Any loss of life is tragic, but the community can now see the truth," Contra Costa Sheriff David Livingston said in a news release. "Tyrell Wilson did in fact threaten the lives of passing motorists by throwing objects, possibly rocks, from the overpass down onto Highway 680. He was found with numerous rocks in his jacket pocket."
Police said Hall was initially called to a report of a person throwing rocks from the overpass onto the freeway. When officers arrived at the intersection, police said Wilson pulled a knife as Hall approached him and didn’t drop it when asked to do so multiple times.
Wilson was shot once. He died a few days later.
"He did pull a knife on Officer Hall. He did threaten Officer Hall," Livingston added. "He did start advancing toward Officer Hall in the middle of a major intersection. Officers are forced to make split second decisions to protect themselves and the public and that's what happened here."
The incident remains under investigation.
The Town of Danville is named in a federal lawsuit filed earlier this month over Wilson’s death.
It was November 2018 when Danville Police, including Hall, were involved in a slow-moving vehicle chase in downtown Danville of an unarmed man who had been acting suspicious. Becton's office said the suspect rang someone's doorbell and "was lingering in the area" before driving away.
Within moments, the incident turned deadly.
Hall, who wasn't involved in the initial chase, stopped his vehicle in front of the pursuit and fired at the 33-year-old man as he approached Front St.
Laudemer Arboleda died after he was shot nine times through his windshield.
Hall is charged with felony voluntary manslaughter and felony assault with a semi-automatic firearm, ending more than two-year-long investigation. "Manslaughter is the unlawful killing of a human being without malice and, in this case, we believe that Officer Hall killed without lawful excuse or justification," Becton said.
Civil rights attorney John Burris, who represents the both the Wilson and Arboleda families, welcomes the charges but said the delay in prosecuting Hall is hurtful.
Mayor Renee Morgan said she respects the DA’s decision to file charges and aims to continue to build trust with the community. "We continue to support full transparency in all matters related to both incidents," she added.
Hall could face up to 22 years in prison if convicted.
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