ORLANDO, Fla. — Relatives of a 26-year-old man who was shot to death by an Orlando police officer in downtown earlier this month spoke publicly Wednesday afternoon outside the Orange County Courthouse after watching police body-worn camera video of the shooting.
>>> Bodycam videos show Orlando police officer fatally shoot man seated in parked car in downtown <<<
Police said three officers on bicycles approached Derek Diaz on July 3 at East Jefferson Street and North Orange Avenue as he was sitting in his parked car because they suspected him of doing drugs. Police shot him one minute into their interaction.
Orlando police Officer Jose Velez shot Diaz as he reached toward the car’s center console with his right hand.
Investigators said Velez shot Diaz because he thought the man was reaching for a gun. They later determined that Diaz had thrown drugs out of the car’s window after being shot, but they have not specified what type of drugs they were. No weapon was found in the car.
One of the family’s attorneys, Natalie Jackson, said during Wednesday’s news conference that police showed Diaz’s family bodycam video of the shooting during a 10-minute meeting Wednesday morning, but investigators did not answer any of their questions.
She said that during the meeting, Diaz’s family members were not allowed to rewatch the video, read the police report or question police about the circumstances that led up to the shooting.
“Our reaction to what we saw is that it’s not the complete evidence,” Jackson said.
Sonja Nava, the mother of Diaz’s daughter, said she was deeply disturbed by the videos.
“The video was so sickening to watch (that) I threw up while watching it,” she said. “All we know from that video is that Derek was sitting in his car and he was not doing anything wrong. Three aggressive officers approached him.”
She said she informed their daughter Tuesday of her father’s death.
“I did tell her yesterday that he did pass away, and she was upset,” Nava said. “She did cry.”
Jackson said she would like to know what led police to approach Diaz.
“What was the reason to approach Derek in the first place?” she said. “Why did they say downtown Orlando ... was a drug-ridden area?”
Jackson said Diaz had a medical marijuana license because he suffered from anxiety and that that might have caused him to have a slower reaction time to officers’ commands.
She said her legal team will bring in a police use of force expert to determine whether the shooting was justified.
The family said a funeral service will be held for Diaz on Friday.
Click here to see newly released video of the shooting.
Click here to download the free WFTV news and weather apps, click here to download the WFTV Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
0 of 10
©2023 Cox Media Group
