SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Legal Newsline) - California's Placer County and some of its deputy shefiffs have moved to dismiss the wrongful death lawsuit over the shooting of a man they say screamed "Just f---ing shoot me!" before advancing on them with a pocketknife.
The county, Sheriff Wayne Woo and three of his deputies filed the motion Dec. 1 in California federal court. They were sued in August by the Estate of Christopher Temple, a man allegedly suffering from a mental health episode when he was pulled over in January 2023.
Though the plaintiffs say Temple was shot multiple times when he exited his vehicle and did not pose a threat, the motion to dismiss paints a different picture. They said he refused to show his hands and began pulling away and attempted to pull away from Deputy Melissa Adams, leading to a struggle inside the car.
Adams and the other deputies stepped back from the car, from which Temple exited with a 2 1/2-inch pocketknife, the motion says. Adams yelled "Gun" before correcting herself and ordering Temple to drop the knife, she says.
"Deputies... pointed their pistols at Christopher Temple," the motion says. "Christopher Temple yelled 'Shoot me! Just fucking shoot me! Shoot me! Do it!' None of the deputies had a taser on their utility belt."
Temple started walking slowly towards the deputies, then took two large steps toward them, they say.
"Deputies... fired several gun shots and Christopher Temple fell to the ground in front of his vehicle and dropped the pocketknife. Deputies... continued to point firearms at Christopher Temple while he remained on the ground with the knife lying next to him."
Temple grabbed the knife and stood back up, the motion says, and again advanced on the deputies, who shot him again. After about a minute, they handcuffed Temple and began CPR, but Temple died at the scene, they say. He died at the scene from the gunshot wounds.
The suit blames the county and its deputies for allegedly inadequate post-shooting medical care and say they violated the Rehabilitation Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act and temple's civil rights.
The county attacks the complaint's allegations of inadequate policies designed to handle persons suffering from mental health crises as unspecific.
"Plaintiffs do not identify a specific policy that it failed to promulgate," the motion says. "Instead, it vaguely references general (Peace Officer Standards and Training) standards.
"Nor, are there any facts establishing any policy not implemented was a cause of the constitutional violation. There are no facts connecting a lack of a certain policy to Christopher Temple's vehicle stop and use of force."