For about a minute, a dog from the San Jose Police Station tore the assailant’s neck without hesitation.
According to court documents, officers unleashed a man K-9, whom they wanted in connection with the theft of alcohol from a local grocery store.
However, just a few seconds of his arrest, his handler fails to contain and conquer his K-9 partner. According to court documents, other officers asked him to quell the dogs, to suppress them.
Sixty seconds later, Tex finally unlocked the grip of Anthony Paredes, a Santa Clara County resident. Anthony Paredes erupted blood from her head and neck during the attack, court documents and body camera video show.
Paredes, struggling to speak five years after the attack, sued the city of San Jose. That police station. Two dog officers, Michael Jeffrey and Kyle Aleman. and Officer Brett Hatzenbler for the excessive power and violation of his civil rights.
Later last month, the city council chose not to fight the lawsuit. Instead, the 11 members unanimously voted for a $1.6 million settlement at the board meeting on March 25th.
“I can’t undo what’s been done to my client, but that’s a pretty big settlement,” said Paredes’ lawyer Izaak Schwaiger. “There’s something sweet about the police having to pay Anthony after Anthony has to get a lick from them.”
The above Paredes came out of the trash can and the K-9 was held around his neck, his lawyer said.
(Izaak Schwaiger)
San Jose police said they would not comment on issues “related to the lawsuit.” The mayor and representatives of the city’s district attorney’s office did not respond to inquiries.
The incident that led to a $1.6 million settlement occurred on February 7, 2020. The unnamed Paredes girlfriend enters Safeway grocery store in San Jose while he cashed out his check.
Inside the store, she attempted to steal alcohol and was grabbed by the store’s security guard, according to court documents.
Paredes saw the incident and rushed towards the entrance to the store and fled when the clerk called police, documents say.
Police dispatchers classified the event as a powerful weapons robber, as stated in court documents. In other words, no weapons were used, but the five police officers who answered the call believed that Paredes was armed with some sort of “blade weapon.”
Schwaiger believes Safeway employees have made “false statements” that Paredes threatened to cut him down. He said the security video presented in the court did not support such claims.
While the officers arrived at Safeway, Paredes tried to hide in a nearby neighborhood. Voices from the surveillance helicopter begged Paredes to surrender, but court documents show he was hidden for about 45 minutes.
The helicopter spotter eventually saw Parede jumping into a plastic trash can.
According to the documentation, Officer Jeffrey initially released Tex to find Paredes. When the dog found the right trash can, the officer finally knocked it.
That’s when Paredes yelled “It’s okay!” Three times Jeffrey deleted the can and ordered Tex to bite it, according to court documents.
The animals were chopped with Paredes’ head and neck, documentary and body camera video shows.
Schweiger said that although the dog may be trained to grab the limbs, in this example the K-9 appears latching into the first part of the Paredes body, his head and neck.
“You need to remember that this is an animal designed to kill,” Schweiger said. “It’s a weapon.”
Within seconds, the officer said, “Microphone.” [Jeffrey]While Jeffrey continues screaming, “Drop him!” court documents say to let the animal release its jaws.
The officers continued to ask Jeffrey to stop Tex. The effort failed because the collar was removed, the document says.
Video footage showed Paredes being detained during a significant portion of the attack, with officers restraining their hands and legs.
The civil lawsuit alleges that Paredes suffered from several bruises and fractured bones, including a foliar fracture in front of his neck and a partially crushed vertebrae. He also damaged the cartilage and nerves in his neck, preventing members of the choir from singing.
Eventually, Paredes pleaded guilty to being an accomplice with his girlfriend. Schweiger accused the county district attorney of accepting the plea instead of fighting for his client.
However, he is pleased with the “substantial settlement” and believes San Jose should reconsider the use of police dogs in attack scenarios.
“That’s what I hope for,” he said.
An analysis by Fox 2 San Francisco in July 2022 found that San Jose police dogs accounted for 187 bites in five years. This is most of the Bay Area law enforcement agencies.
In 2024, the city of Brentwood in Northern California paid $967,000 to a shoplifter who suffered from a severe dog bite and suffered a cut to the scalp.
A Los Angeles County resident filed a lawsuit against the Sheriff’s Department last year when one of the dogs tightened their hands.
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