San Jose will face a trial after a police dog bit a man’s neck for a minute after he was suspected of shoplifting at Safeway and hid in a garbage can.
The 31-page verdict in Anthony Paredes’ excessive force claim against San Jose revealed further facts.
Tex, the dog who bit Parades, had ignored 22 verbal commands from his police handler, despite Officer Michael Jeffrey declaring in court that Tex had “never failed to release a bite in the field.”
“This evidence would support an inference that Jeffrey knew that Tex could or would fail to release [him] when commanded, and that his efforts to release Tex were therefore not taken in good
The judge based his ruling on six body camera films from Paredes’ legal team showing the dog’s disobedience.
Izaak Schwaiger, Paredes’ lawyer, alleged KTVU the officers lied. This was known by the city. This proves there are multiple nasty apples. The SJPD brass knew and approved of this.”
Pitts’ ruling also allowed a jury to evaluate Tex “deadly force,” citing many factors: The dog didn’t release on command, its average bite hold was 60 seconds compared to the industry standard of 10 seconds, the police knew Paredes was in a trash can and would emerge with his head out, giving the dog something to latch onto, and Jeffrey tried to pull Tex off with the dog’s teeth in his neck.
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“There has never been a case in the 9th circuit or anywhere else that has made a ruling so definitive as to a K-9 being deadly force,” he added.
In a K-9 lawsuit involving San Jose police, U.S. District Judge Edward Davila ruled on David Tovar’s Jan. 21, 2021, incident.
A San Jose K-9 bit Tovar for 2 minutes and 40 seconds, which the court deemed excessive and said a jury could find it fatal.
Dog-bite lacerations covered Tovar’s body as he died from police gunshots.
Due to existing litigation, San Jose City Attorney Nora Frimann would not discuss Paredes’ Feb. 7, 2020 incident.
Four years ago, Parades was hiding in a trash bin when police used their German dog, Tex, to catch him for stealing $350 of tequila from the Safeway on Berryessa Road with his girlfriend.
KTVU got body-worn camera footage of the fatal confrontation, showing blood on Paredes’ face as the dog thrashed its head.
Tex held his teeth in Paredes’ throat for a minute, ripping his windpipe and thyroid cartilage. In their sworn statements, the cops suspected Paredes had a “bladed weapon.”
However, the judge noted in court filings that the 911 and dispatch transcripts proved that officers were told Paredes was unarmed.
“Drawing all factual inferences in Paredes’ favor, a jury could conclude that at the time Jeffrey deployed Tex, a reasonable officer in his position would have understood Paredes to be unarmed, of minimal threat, and attempting to surrender,” Pitts said. “Existing case law clearly established at the time of the bite that the initial deployment of a canine in such circumstances violates the Fourth Amendment.”
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Jeffrey confessed in a deposition in October 2023 that he was fired from the K-9 unit for breaking the department’s use of force policy.
The petition states that the K-9 and Internal Affairs units deemed the bite within policy, but “ultimately that determination was overridden by the chain of command.”
Due to his past history, including multiple drug arrests, Paredes has struggled to obtain meaningful work.
Schwaiger said he’s been volunteering at a local shelter. Paredes admitted to one count of accessories and brass knuckles in the Safeway case. He got two years in state prison.
Since the attack, Paredes’ windpipe and thyroid are permanently injured, preventing him from singing at church.
