A man wanted to commit suicide so cops shot him until he fell down and then put 8 more rounds into his body as he lie on the ground to make sure he died.

Los Angeles, CA — In March 2021, David Ordaz Jr., a 34-year-old man in the midst of a suicidal depression was in need of mental health help. He was sitting in a car next to his sister, holding a kitchen knife and telling her that he wanted to die. When the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department showed up on the scene, they fulfilled Ordaz’s wishes, leaving the family to regret their call to 911 and seek compensation in a wrongful death lawsuit after cops needlessly resorted to deadly force.

Now, the officer who fired the deadly shots — and who kept firing after Ordaz fell to the ground — has been charged. On Thursday, Deputy Remin Pineda was charged with one count each of assault with a semiautomatic firearm and assault under color of authority.

“Unlawful and excessive force at the hands of police erodes the public trust and leads to further divisions between law enforcement and the communities they serve,” District Attorney George Gascón said in a news release. “It is imperative that we hold law enforcement accountable when they act unlawfully. This tragic killing of Mr. Ordaz in the presence of his own family has caused tremendous harm that will reverberate for years to come.”

Indeed, it has.

“I’m currently with someone who is telling me they’re suicidal,” Ordaz’s sister told a 911 dispatcher on that fateful day. “I was just wondering if you could guide me on what I can do to help them.”

Ordaz’s sister told police that her brother wanted to commit “suicide by cop,” which is why she called 911 to ask them how to help her brother. Instead of telling her how to help her brother, however, deputies were sent to their home.

Ordaz’s last moments alive were captured on body camera footage which left Sheriff Alex Villanueva with “grave concerns,” according to a statement at the time.

As the footage shows, despite telling Ordaz they were not there to shoot him, deputies kept their guns pointed at Ordaz while saying, “We’re not here to shoot you, dude. We’re trying to help you out.” Another deputy on the scene was armed with a “less than lethal” shotgun.

The entire time deputies engaged with Ordaz, his family begged him to put down the knife but he would not listen. Never, in the body camera footage does Ordaz attempt to harm anyone.

Only after they shot him with a less-than-lethal beanbag round did Ordaz start advancing toward officers. Instead of firing another beanbag round, the officers with their pistols pointed at Ordaz decided to unload them into his body.

As Ordaz takes a step forward, they open fire and put 12 rounds into Ordaz as his family screams in horror. Even after Ordaz hit the ground, and was clearly not a threat, Pineda continued to fire.

Even if officers were justified in firing at Ordaz for walking toward him with the knife, the 8 or so more rounds Pineda fired into his body after he fell to the ground were nothing short of murder.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the video showed “a clear policy failure” with police failing to properly de-escalate a mental health call. One expert said that LASD officers should’ve discussed a strategy with Ordaz’s family beforehand and also had a crisis intervention specialist talk calmly to the man.

Instead of these tactics, police chose to end a man’s life. It is essential to point out that Ordaz had committed no crime — yet his life was taken anyway.

According to reports, the investigation by the Sheriff’s department is still underway.

Below is the disturbing video illustrating how willing police are to “help” people out who want to commit “suicide by cop.”

Article posted with permission from Matt Agorist