The San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office has released its report into the 2019 death of a man following a violent struggle with deputies after overdosing on drugs in Victorville, authorities said.
Ruben Escudero, 41, died after being removed from life support at a hospital on Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2019, according to the district attorney’s office report. His death came four days after the Saturday, Oct. 19, 2019 encounter with first responders at a home in the 16000 block of Monte Vista Street.
The newly released review examined the actions of three involved San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department deputies, identified at Julian Mata, Humberto Miranda and Jessaqua Attlesey. It concluded that all three deputies acted lawfully in exercise of their rights to self defense and defense of others.
Escudero was repeatedly Tased and struck by deputies during the struggle, which took place after he was partially revived from his overdose through the use of Narcan anti-overdose medication, according to the report.
“At autopsy, the doctor determined Escudero’s cause of death was acute methamphetamine, heroin, and phencyclidine toxicity,” the DA’s office report said. Phencyclidine is also commonly known as PCP.
Revived with Narcan
The three deputies, along with firefighters and emergency medical technicians, responded to the home shortly after 9 a.m. after receiving a report that Escudero was overdosing on drugs at the home, officials said.
Escudero, who was homeless at the time, would regularly visit the home to use the shower, according to prosecutors said.
First responders initially found Escudero unconscious and placed a bag-valve-mask on his face to assist with breathing, officials said.
Witnesses pointed deputies to a burnt spoon, which Escudero was believed to have used to ingest heroin, authorities said. Several syringe caps were also found on the floor nearby.
“An EMT administered Narcan intranasally to Escudero and warned others in the room that Escudero may become violent,” the report stated.
The encounter turns violent
Paramedics tried to calm and reassure Escudero as he regained consciousness, prosecutors said.
“However, as Escudero became more alert, he grew agitated,” the report said. “Escudero asked the medics what they were doing to him. Despite their attempts to reassure him, Escudero remained confused and became aggressive.”
The report stated Escudeo began trying to stand up as medical personnel attempted to get him to lie down so he could be loaded into an ambulance. The deputies began assisting medics in restraining the comabtive patient.
“Escudero got to his knees, balled his fists, and began swinging at the medics beside him,” according to the DA’s report. “To protect the medical personnel, the deputies intervened.”
The struggle soon turned into a fight, and deputy Mata struck Escudero in the face, with no apparent effect, officials said. As the struggle continued, deputy Attlesy deployed a Taser, which caused Escudero to fall to the ground.
Prosecutors said deputies then tried to place Escudero into handcuffs, but he continued to struggle. A second attempt to use a Taser on Escudero had no effect, and he continued “punching wildly toward ‘anyone and everyone.”
Mata then struck Escudero four to five more times in the face, but again, saw no apparent effect.
“Escudero struck Deputy Mata in the face, during the fray, but because of the speed with which things occurred, Deputy Mata was unsure when it happened,” the report noted.
Escudero continued striking and kicking at the deputies as Attlesey grabbed deputy Miranda’s Taser and deployed it twice, officials said. It was not effective.
“As Escudero overpowered and lifted Deputy Mata off the ground, Deputy Attlesey used the Taser as an impact weapon to strike Escudero in the face [and head],” the report continued. The blows opened cuts on Escudero’s head, which “began to bleed profusely,” but he continued to fight.
A firefighters stepped onto Escudero’s upper back in an effort to hold him down while deputies attempted to wrestle the man into handcuffs. Once placed in handcuffs, “Escudero continued to kick and tried to get up,” the review stated.
An EMT injected a sedative into Escudero’s arm, and he stopped fighting within minutes, officials said.
Medical care was continued as Escudero was taken to a nearby hospital, where he went into cardiac arrest upon arrival, according to the DA’s office.
“Escudero never regained consciousness and after several days, was taken off life support,” the report said.
Read the full report:
The full report can also be viewed on the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office website at da.sbcounty.gov.
This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Report details man’s death following fight with deputies in Victorville
Reporting by Brian Day, Victorville Daily Press / Victorville Daily Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Brian Day, Victorville Daily Press | USA TODAY Network
