On December 4, 2013, authorities were alerted to a red pickup truck driving the wrong way. California Highway Patrol Officers located the pickup truck and attempted a traffic stop. Authorities reported that the driver did not stop and that the vehicle attempted to flee. The incident escalated when, according to law enforcement, Weldon Patterson Fewell attempted to ram a California Highway Patrol vehicle. California Highway Patrol Officer Martin Sanchez shot Mr. Fewell, and he was then transported to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital for treatment and was reported to be in stable condition following the shooting. It was argued that Officer Martin Sanchez used excessive force against Mr. Fewell when he shot his gun at him 12 times, emptying his clip. Officer Sanchez’s partner was an arm’s length away from Officer Sanchez but only shot once. The difference in the officers’ use of force became relevant to the litigation concerning whether the force used against Mr. Fewell violated his constitutional rights. Fewell filed a civil-rights action against California Highway Patrol Officer Martin Sanchez and others.
Reconstruction can help establish the physical environment, demonstrate the positions and movements relevant to the incident, and place the available evidence into the context of the scene. Evidence Room’s involvement in a case of this nature provides an opportunity to transform a complicated officer-involved shooting into a clear visual representation of the scene and the events under examination. The reconstruction the team created showed the positioning of the officers and movements of the red pickup truck, the bullet trajectory of each officer, and the audio of the officers and gunshots. In this matter, Evidence Room’s reconstruction work was designed to assist in communicating the circumstances surrounding the incident in a clear and understandable format. The exhibit provided a visual means of presenting the scene and relevant investigative information, helping translate a complex officer-involved shooting into evidence that could be evaluated.