The Office of San Francisco's Chief Medical Examiner called it "homicide"

William Jenkins from Mission Local summarized the account given by the San Francisco Police Department in a public meeting about how officers came to kill two apparently unhoused men. According to the cops, a woman called in to say one guy was beating on another. Twelve minutes later, some nine to eleven officers arrived at the scene.

To make the story short, both guys were on the ground; the reported scene: "Michael MacFiohnghain, age 57, is laying on his side holding a knife over 49-year-old Rafael Mendoza." 

Somehow all these heavily armed cops, hanging about for some nine minutes, bristling with "less lethal" armament and guns galore, were unable to end the altercation without shooting. Here's Jenkins" report of what the police department had to offer:

Footage from 11 different body cameras show officers aiming less-lethal weapons at the men, while one of the officers negotiated with MacFiohnghain, trying to convince him that all would be settled if he drops the knife.  

“I need you to drop the knife so we can sort this out okay? We’re not gonna shoot you.” 

Another officer responded with, “Drop the knife or we will shoot.” 

More than nine officers surround both men with weapons drawn, shields posted and pepper spray equipped. Officers repeatedly told MacFiohnghain to drop the knife, following up with a shot from a foam baton weapon.  

MacFiohnghain and Mendoza continued laying on the ground in the same position, while another officer sprayed MacFiohnghain with pepper spray.

 Also in the footage, an officer recognized Mendoza and mentioned he doesn’t speak English.

“We just booked him two weeks ago. He’s Cuban.” 

Officers initially believed Mendoza had a knife, but later they said MacFiohnghain had two knives. “Left side has two of them, hit him again,” said one of the officers. Three knives were found at the scene.  

“This is why we show all the videos because it shows perspectives of different officers,” said [Police Chief Bill] Scott. He also said that the California Department of Justice is still investigating which knives were used and how. [Were knives "used" at all? Not clear.]

Minutes before officers opened fire, one officer yelled “drop the knife” yet again while another said to the officers surrounding the men “there are too many guns, there’s too many.” He asked the officers to step back. 

The officers, however, stayed put with their weapons drawn, watching both men struggle on the ground. 

At approximately 8:10 p.m. after a roughly nine-minute struggle, MacFiohnghain suddenly climbed over the top of Mendoza and brought “the knife point downward towards Mr. Mendoza’s upper body,” Yep said. 

Shouts from the officers overlapped and began to mix as officers fired two more less-lethal rounds. “Within seconds, MacFiohnghain again brought the knife point up and then downward towards Mr. Mendoza in a stabbing motion at least two times while officers continued to give commands to drop the knife.” 

As MacFiohnghain apparently appeared ready to act, four officers opened fire. Three officers discharged their department issued handguns. A fourth fired a rifle.  

Yep said that the investigations team found 11 pistol casings and one rifle casing at the scene. 

While the smoke was still clearing, one officer mumbled “this is bullshit” while another calmed one of the officers who fired shots. 

... MacFhionghain died at the scene. Mendoza was taken to Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, where he later died. 

A report from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner sent to Mission Local on Wednesday reported that both men died from gunshot wounds and the report characterized both deaths as homicides.

How on earth could that many cops be fail to disarm two middle-aged men with knives without using bullets? I am tempted to conclude the problem was something like the Uvalde police contingent: they feared they might get hurt. 

If you are a better person than I, you can watch the complete video of the meeting from which this official police story of the killings derives, including edited and blurred body camera video. I admit, I skimmed. But given the long record of the SFPD of defending the indefensible, I won't be surprised if yet more incriminating details emerge with further investigation.

 

UPDATE: The Chron interviewed police practices experts who had viewed the body camera footage:

David Klinger, a former police officer and a professor of criminology and criminal justice at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, said there are important distinctions between the legal standard and successful policing.

“When something like this happens, it’s a failure,” he said. “It’s something that shouldn’t have happened, so we need to understand why.”

Neither Klinger nor other experts think the shooting cops will face legal charges in these two deaths.