Body camera footage was released last week showing an Oregon cop first tasering and then fatally shooting 33-year-old Matthew Graves on September 19.
Graves, who was unarmed, had no active warrants at the time he encountered Eagle Point police officer Daniel Cardenas.
Cardenas testified to a grand jury last week that he began pursuing Graves at around 8:45 p.m. last month when he was driving his patrol car and Graves stepped into the street against a traffic light.
No charges will be filed against Cardenas or his partner Clarence “C.J.” Davis, according to Eagle Point District Attorney Beth Heckert, who announced on October 24 that five of seven grand jury members determined Cardenas was legally justified in shooting Graves.
“After deliberating for about fifteen minutes, they decided that the officer acted lawfully,” Heckert said last week.
“That was their decision to make, whether there would be any criminal charges against the police officer.”
After making initial contact with Graves for jaywalking, Cardenas follows Graves into a the restroom of a Carl’s Jr. restaurant.
Officer Cardenas then tries to “have a conversation” with Graves, but Graves doesn’t respond to his liking.
Graves was washing and drying his hands when Cardenas entered, so “having seen his hands,” Graves holsters his gun and draws his taser instead.
Graves pulls out some money and tells Cardenas he wants to go eat.
When Graves tries to walk past Cardenas, Cardenas tasers him.
“The probes hit Mr. Graves’ chest and arm,” Heckert during a press conference, “and they don’t make a good connection, for whatever reason.”
At that point, Davis arrives as back up.
Davis claims Graves punched him in the face knocking him to the floor during the incident.
However, video does not support his claim.
Cardenas says that’s when he rushed Graves and ended up taking Davis down as well during the struggle.
That’s when Cardenas’ body cam falls off to the ground during the ordeal.
Then Davis, disoriented from being “punched,” also notices Cardenas’ taser on the floor.
Fearing for his life, Davis mistakes the taser for a gun.
“Officer Davis announces something to the effect of ‘he has a gun’ or ‘there’s a gun,'” Heckert explained.
“At that moment, the thing that they believe was a gun is a taser. And it deploys.”
Davis and Cardenas both say they did not pull the trigger on the taser.
So Heckert concludes it must have been Graves who pulled the trigger before officer Davis screams “it’s a taser” as he’s getting tased while holding the weapon.
“But Officer Cardinez has already heard ‘gun,’ ‘is it a gun,’ ‘gun.’ And Officer Cardenas is now unholstering his firearm and he shoots Mr. Graves twice,” Heckert explained.
A toxicology report revealed Graves had no alcohol or drugs in his system at the time of the encounter, according to kdrv.
Read the audio transcript below, which was provided by the DA’s office.
MATTHEW GRAVES: Have a great day.
OFFICER CARDENAS: What are you doing?
MATTHEW GRAVES: (inaudible) [Expletive] you.
OFFICER CARDENAS: What?
5125 (inaudible) 21. 7
DISPATCH: Copy, 5121.
OFFICER CARDENAS: What are you doing?
MATTHEW GRAVES: (inaudible) mouth and go.
OFFICER CARDENAS: What are you doing, dude?
MATTHEW GRAVES: Worthless [Expletive] [Expletive].
OFFICER CARDENAS: Let me see your [Expletive] hands right now.
MATTHEW GRAVES: (inaudible)
OFFICER CARDENAS: Let me see your hands! What the [Expletive] are you doing?
MATTHEW GRAVES: I’m getting food. Shut the [Expletive] up. You don’t even talk to me like that.
OFFICER CARDENAS: What are you doing?
MATTHEW GRAVES: What is this man called? (inaudible) your gun.
OFFICER CARDENAS: You’re gonna get tased if you don’t get on the ground.
MATTHEW GRAVES: (inaudible)
OFFICER CARDENAS: Get on the ground.
MATTHEW GRAVES: No.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Get on the ground!
MATTHEW GRAVES: (inaudible) sober and everything and you will be gone.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Step back. Get back and get on the ground.
MATTHEW GRAVES: What’s your name? Cordful (phonetic)? Excuse me, I have to eat.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Get back.
MATTHEW GRAVES: I’m gonna eat, excuse me.
OFFICER CARDENAS: No, you’re not.
MATTHEW GRAVES: You wanna bet.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Do you wanna bet? Do you have ID on you?
MATTHEW GRAVES: No, I don’t.
OFFICER CARDENAS: What’s your name?
MATTHEW GRAVES: Your name.
OFFICER CARDENAS: What’s your name? Get back.
MATTHEW GRAVES: You touch me again you’re gone.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Touch me again and see what [Expletive] happens.
MATTHEW GRAVES: Okay.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Get back!
MATTHEW GRAVES: Touch me one more time.
(Taser deployed)
MATTHEW GRAVES: Oh. Okay.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Get on the ground now! Get on the ground now! Get on the ground now!
5125, tased.
MATTHEW GRAVES: (inaudible)
OFFICER CARDENAS: Get down on the ground again.
MATTHEW GRAVES: (inaudible) for no reason.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Get on the ground.
OFFICER DAVIS: Turn around. There’s a gun.
OFFICER CARDENAS: You have a gun?
OFFICER DAVIS: There’s a gun. Oh, it’s a taser.
(Gun shot)
OFFICER CARDENAS: Shots fired. 5125, shots fired, shots fired. Get on your stomach.
OFFICER DAVIS: Yeah.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Start medical. Code 3, shots fired.
DISPATCH: Copy, (inaudible) Code 3, shots fired.
OFFICER DAVIS: oh, dude.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Are you okay? Are you okay?
OFFICER DAVIS: I think I’m all right.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Where’s my camera?
OFFICER DAVIS: I don’t know. It’s behind you. Your (inaudible) is behind you.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Are you okay?
OFFICER DAVIS: Quit fighting with us, do you understand! Do you understand! Let’s get his other hand behind him.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Dammit. Dammit. Why did you do that!
OFFICER DAVIS: What the hell are you doing?
MATTHEW GRAVES: (inaudible)
OFFICER CARDENAS: You don’t grab ~- you don’t do that!
OFFICER DAVIS: You don’t grab a gun, you understand that? You do what the cops tell you!
OFFICER CARDENAS: [Expletive]. I got this hand.
OFFICER DAVIS: I got this arm.
OFFICER CARDENAS: 5125 step it up, medical Code 3, shots fired.
DISPATCH: (inaudible)
OFFICER DAVIS: Man, my ear’s ringing. Are you all right?
OFFICER CARDENAS: Hey, stay with me, man. Hey!
OFFICER DAVIS: Hey!
OFFICER CARDENAS: Stay with me!
OFFICER DAVIS: Come on. Hey.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Hey!
OFFICER DAVIS: Stay here, man.
OFFICER CARDENAS: [Expletive]. Dammit.
OFFICER DAVIS: I know.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Why would you do that!?
OFFICER DAVIS: I don’t know if he grabbed the gun, he got [Expletive] tased and…
OFFICER CARDENAS: Where’s the gun?
OFFICER DAVIS: I’ve got a taser over here. I mean, that might have been what it is.
OFFICER CARDENAS: That’s my taser.
OFFICER DAVIS: That’s your taser?
OFFICER CARDENAS: He grabbed that out of my hand.
OFFICER DAVIS: Okay.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Where’s the gun though?
OFFICER DAVIS: That’s – that might have been what I saw.
OFFICER CARDENAS: [Expletive].
OFFICER DAVIS: He had that in his hands and then I we got barbs and [Expletive], he’s grabbing for that.
OFFICER CARDENAS: I tased him. I tased him.
OFFICER DAVIS: Right. [Expletive] he was flailing around like a (inaudible).
OFFICER CARDENAS: 5125, we’re in the men’s bathroom.
DISPATCH: Copy (inaudible).
OFFICER DAVIS: Need to notify the supervisor, please.
DISPATCH: Affirm.
OFFICER CARDENAS: 5125
DISPATCH: 25.
OFFICER CARDENAS: I shot twice. Need to advise supervisor. Is that yours right there?
OFFICER DAVIS: I don’t know which one is mine.
OFFICER CARDENAS: That’s yours. I’m the only one recording right now.
OFFICER DAVIS: Okay. Mine was on, but…
OFFICER CARDENAS: We’re Code 4, trying to get the male into custody, but we need medical here Code 3.
DISPATCHER: (inaudible) about to pull up.
OFFICER CARDENAS: He’s shot in the back.
DISPATCHER: Shot in the back.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Hey.
OFFICER DAVIS: Hey. Stay with us, buddy, okay?
Does he got ID or a wallet on him or something?
OFFICER CARDENAS: No. He reached into his pocket to grab some money and then I told him, “What’s your name?”
He says, “Your name.”
And then he keeps trying to get by me, I said, “Get back. Get on the ground.” I keep pushing him back with my
left hand and he’s not wanting to get back.
OFFICER DAVIS: Right. Right.
OFFICER CARDENAS: I think that’s when you show up back here.
OFFICER DAVIS: Yeah. All right (inaudible).
(Mbre officers enter bathroom)
OFFICER CARDENAS: Right here. Hey.
OFFICER DAVIS: Hey. I’ll grab his legs.
We’re gonna come out here. We’re gonna go out here.
OFFICER CARDENAS: You want to drag him out?
OFFICER DAVIS: Yeah. I got (inaudible).
OFFICER CARDENAS: Dammit.
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: (inaudible)
OFFICER CARDENAS: Yes
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: Pull him out.
MEDICAL PERSONNEL: What do we got?
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: Got a gunshot, two
OFFICER~CARDENASz Two shots in the back.
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: – two (inaudible) in the back.
MEDICAL PERSONNEL: In the back?
OFFICER CARDENAS: Yeah.
MEDICAL PERSONNEL: Roll him over.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Don’t let anyone in that bathroom.
OFFICER DAVIS: Keep everybody out of the bathroom.
OFFICER CARDENAS: Hey, grab that other arm.
I’ve got gloves.
(People Speaking in background – inaudible)
MEDICAL PERSONNEL: (inaudible) can we take those off or not? Can we take those off?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (inaudible)
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: We need to close down. They need to close this thing down.
OFFICER CARDENAS: We need everyone out.
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: Start grabbing everybody’s ID
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: That’s what I’m saying, I told them – they’re all gonna stay here. I told them to shut down the drive-thru, nobody else is coming in.
MEDICAL PERSONNEL: Can we get those cuffs off?
OFFICER CARDENAS: You need me to get them off?
MEDICAL PERSONNEL: Yeah.
MEDICAL PERSONNEL: Yeah, he’s not
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: Yeah, we’re going to seize those cuffs (inaudible).
OFFICER CARDENAS: I shot twice.
MEDICAL PERSONNEL: Let’s roll him onto the backboard or the
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: Is he conscious at all?
OFFICER CARDENAS: Is he conscious?
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: Yeah.
OFFICER CARDENAS: NO.
MEDICAL PERSONNEL: Does he have a pulse?
MEDICAL PERSONNEL: He had a pulse earlier.
(Medical personnel speaking in background
inaudible)
OFFICER CARDENAS: C.J., you got blood on your mouth.
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: C.J., you okay?
OFFICER CARDENAS: He – he socked him. I’ll shut up.
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: Okay, yeah.
OFFICER CARDENAS: I’m recording, everyone.
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: So am I?
OFFICER CARDENAS: What’s that?
(People speaking in background ~ inaudible)
MEDICAL PERSONNEL: Get him on the gurney real quick?
MEDICAL PERSONNEL: Yeah.
(People speaking in background – inaudible)
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: Hi. Hi, are you good?
OFFICER CARDENAS: I’m on.
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: You got any – any injuries on you?
OFFICER CARDENAS: No.
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: Okay. Just chill out, take a couple deep breaths, we’re gonna get everything squared away. What all went down?
OFFICER CARDENAS: I’m – they’re new.
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: What’s that?
OFFICER CARDENAS: They’re new. They – how about we just do this for now
