A grand jury has declined to charge an off-duty Los Angeles police officer who shot and killed an intellectually disabled man and critically wounded his parents in June at a Corona Costco, Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin announced Wednesday, Sept. 25.

Riverside County Grand Jury members heard testimony in a case that has elicited questions from the public about the legal limits and wisdom of using lethal force in crowded public settings by police officers, especially those who are off duty.

“After considering all the evidence, the grand jury decided that no criminal charges should be filed,” Hestrin said at a news conference at his office. That grand jury decision came Tuesday afternoon.

It was revealed Wednesday for the first time, that LAPD Officer Salvador Sanchez believed he had been the victim of gunfire when he actually received a blow to the back of his head from Kenneth French, 32. Sanchez was holding his 18-month-old son at a samples stand at the time.

Several witnesses said they heard Sanchez make that statement and saw him check for blood on his head, Hestrin said.

District Attorney Mike Hestrin speaks as DA Chief of Investigators Joe DelGiudic stands behind him, about no charges being filed in the Costco shooting June 14, 2019 during press conference at the Riverside District Attorney office in Riverside on Wednesday, Sep 25, 2019. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) District Attorney Mike Hestrin plays the video of the Costco shooting was played at left during the press conference.

District Attorney Mike Hestrin speaks as DA Chief of Investigators Joe DelGiudic stands behind him, about no charges being filed in the Costco shooting June 14, 2019 during press conference at the Riverside District Attorney office in Riverside on Wednesday, Sep 25, 2019. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) District Attorney Mike Hestrin plays the video of the Costco shooting was played at left during the press conference.

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District Attorney Mike Hestrin, left listens as Corona Police Chief George Johnstone speaks about the Costco shooting June 14, 2019 during a press conference at the Riverside District Attorney office in Riverside on Wednesday, Sep 25, 2019. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

District Attorney Mike Hestrin speaks as DA Chief of Investigators Joe DelGiudic stands behind him about how there will be no charges filed in the Costco shooting June 14, 2019 during press conference at the Riverside District Attorney office in Riverside on Wednesday, Sep 25, 2019. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

District Attorney Chief of Investigators Joe DelGiudic speaks about the Costco shooting June 14, 2019 during press conference at the Riverside District Attorney office in Riverside on Wednesday, Sep 25, 2019. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)



District Attorney Mike Hestrin speaks as DA Chief of Investigators Joe DelGiudic stands behind him, about no charges being filed in the Costco shooting June 14, 2019 during press conference at the Riverside District Attorney office in Riverside on Wednesday, Sep 25, 2019. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) District Attorney Mike Hestrin played the video of the Costco shooting was played at left during the press conference.

Deputy District Attorney Michelle Paradise speaks about the Costco shooting June 14, 2019 during press conference at the Riverside District Attorney office in Riverside on Wednesday, Sep 25, 2019. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

Corona Police Chief George Johnstone listens as District Attorney Mike Hestrin speaks about no charges being filed in the Costco shooting June 14, 2019 during press conference at the Riverside District Attorney office in Riverside on Wednesday, Sep 25, 2019. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

“The officer, after being struck, thought that he had been shot and believed there was an active shooter in front of him,” Hestrin said. “I believe, based on what I know, he believed his life was in danger.”

Attorney Dale Galipo, who represents Russell and Paola French, the parents of Kenneth French, who died, said Wednesday that the Frenches were “very disappointed and saddened” by the decisions made by the grand jury and the DA’s Office.

He said both parents testified before the grand jury.

Galipo said he was not surprised “in part because I know the history of the relations between law enforcement and the DA’s office.”

The decision he said “is not going to deter us from seeking justice through a federal civil rights lawsuit.” He has already filed a complaint with the city of Los Angeles, a precursor to a lawsuit if the complaint is denied.

Galipo added that he and the French family would speak Thursday at a news conference in Corona.

Ira Salzman, the attorney for Sanchez, said he was happy for his client.

“He is an outstanding young man who faced a horrible situation and acted within the law. It’s a terrible tragedy,” Salzman said in an interview.

After learning of the grand jury’s decision Tuesday, the District Attorney’s Office asked the judge that had sealed the much-discussed but never publicly seen surveillance video of the incident to lift his order. The approximately one-minute video was made public and played Wednesday for the media.

The grainy video that was filmed from far away, however, does not clearly show what happened. The initial contact between French and Sanchez was not visible. Also, the shooting could not be seen. A person wearing a striped shirt believed to be French can be seen being pushed away by someone, possibly his father. A third person, believed to be French’s mother, then crawls into camera view, before all three fall to the floor.

Joe DelGiudice, the DA’s chief of investigations, said his office determined that 3.8 seconds elapsed from the time French struck Sanchez in the back of the head to the time Sanchez fired the first of 10 shots. Three shots hit French in the back, one hit him in the shoulder, one hit his mother in the stomach and one hit his father in the back, Corona Police Chief George Johnstone said.

Early in the investigation, one of Sanchez’s attorneys said Sanchez fired his gun after briefly being knocked unconscious.

“I don’t believe there is any evidence that he was knocked unconscious,” Hestrin said.

To which Hestrin added, “I’m not saying there isn’t a problem with the shooting … I could not clear this officer of any wrongdoing.”

Hestrin said Sanchez could still face civil liability — including the claim against the city of Los Angeles — and the LAPD is conducting its own investigation.

Sanchez remained on desk duty Wednesday pending LAPD’s administrative investigation. The Los Angeles Police Commission will then decide whether the shooting was within department policy, a spokesman said Wednesday.

With the grand jury decision, Sanchez “can now be free of his very heavy burden — it was a homicide, and he was facing a potential life sentence,” Salzman said. “Now the next step is to reclaim his career and we are confident the LAPD (administrative) investigation will come to a similar conclusion.”

Hestrin said he tuned out “social media rants” about the case that demanded Sanchez be charged and said, “I categorically reject the idea that this officer got special treatment. Our protocol was handled to a T.”

Corona police first submitted their investigatory report to the DA’s Office without any recommendation on charges. DA investigators analyzed ballistics, video, medical records and witness statements and provided their report to prosecutors. It was then that Hestrin submitted the case to the grand jury.

Hestrin could have made the decision whether to file charges against Sanchez himself. He said he chose to have the 19-member grand jury hear testimony and weigh evidence partly because there were witnesses who would not talk to his investigators. Grand juries have the power to force witnesses to testify through a subpoena.

Only 12 of the 19 jurors must agree to indict a person, and the standard to indict is probable cause. That’s a lower standard than in a jury trial, where all 12 jurors must agree on a verdict and the standard to convict is evidence beyond a reasonable doubt.

Hestrin said he did not know how many jurors voted to indict.

Hestrin said he has the power to overturn a grand jury’s decision and file criminal charges but decided not to in this case because he believed the process was fair.

“I’m not saying we went to the grand jury because it was a tough case, we have tough cases all the time,” Hestrin said. “It was the type of case where the community needs to weigh in and draw the lines and say this is what we think about an off-duty officer using force.”

Kenneth, who didn’t talk, lived with his parents in the Lake Hills area near Corona.

The shooting happened at 7:46 p.m. on June 14 near the deli in the back of the store on McKinley Street. Corona police said Kenneth French attacked Sanchez “without provocation.” During the encounter, the parents have said, they tried to intervene and explain their son’s condition to Sanchez. But he still fired.

The shots prompted shoppers to flee the store, take cover or hide in walk-in coolers.

Corona police entered the store in less than three minutes after the 911 call. There, they found the Frenches and Sanchez. The officer was hospitalized after complaining of a head injury.

Johnstone said Wednesday that Sanchez was not arrested after being medically cleared because as an officer he had a right to carry a gun. Sanchez said the shooting was done in self-defense and there were no immediate witness statements to the contrary. Corona detectives did not interview the parents as they endured lengthy hospital stays.

They are continuing to recover at home.

Staff Writer Joshua Cain contributed to this report.