Family and friends speak out after man was shot and killed by San Joaquin County deputy
After a San Joaquin County deputy shot and killed a man believed to be armed on Monday, the shooting is now subject to a California Department of Justice investigation.The shooting happened Monday in the area of east Ardelle Avenue and south Walker Lane, just outside of Stockton city limits.Now, family and friends of the man killed want to know what happened.Family members identified the man as 41-year-old Gregory Fitzgerald, saying he is a father of four. The first interaction between Fitzgerald and deputies took place at Eastside Community Park.San Joaquin County Sheriff Patrick Withrow said that around 9 a.m. Monday, deputies stopped Fitzgerald for illegal dumping. "Words were exchanged and a small struggle ensued with the officer and they took off running and began yelling that he had a firearm and that he was going to shoot the officer," Withrow said.Withrow says Fitzgerald led deputies on a foot chase on Ardelle Avenue. Around 11:14 a.m., sheriff deputies surrounded the neighborhood where Fitzgerald was hiding. They say he was found hiding on the roof of a home.From there, he was shot by at least one deputy. The sheriff's office did not say how many times Fitzgerald was shot or by how many deputies. One woman who asked to remain anonymous said she was friends with Fitzgerald and was with him when deputies arrived."They said that he was like digging through trash or something and I was with him when it happened and he was getting clothes out for work and so I think that that's important to get out there, that he wasn't just like digging through trash," she said.Myla Fitzgerald and Shadie Aragon are his younger sisters. They described him as a big teddy bear, saying he was kindhearted. On Monday, they got a phone call from their other brother. "We actually thought he was calling because yesterday was our mom's birthday and she passed away eight years ago," Shadie said. What actually happened, they say, was shocking. "We were both at work when we were told, and he just let us know that the police had shot and killed our brother," Myla said. The biggest question from family and friends is whether or not Fitzgerald was armed.The sheriff's office has not been able to answer that question."How did it lead to that and why did they have to use so much force for one person?" Shadie said. "There was no weapon in sight. I don't understand," Myla added. The family said they will continue to look for answers. "I wish my brother wouldn't have been shot. I wish he would have just been arrested or it would have been dealt with differently," Shadie said. The investigation is with the Attorney General's Office, who said it is still very active. The attorney general noted it would be investigating the shooting under Assembly Bill 1506. AB 1506 states that the California Department of Justice is "required to investigate all incidents of an officer-involved shooting resulting in the death of an unarmed civilian in the state."See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel
