Santa Ana officials are slated to hire outside investigators to launch a probe into police officers who beat and arrested a man after he was thrown onto the street from the hood of a police car.
The scene was caught on camera last week and spurred calls for accountability after going viral on social media platforms.
The probe is expected in a town where law enforcement often face criticism of using excessive force but elected officials and city leaders rarely have a frank public discussion on police violence at the dais.
On Tuesday, Mayor Valerie Amezcua, who is running for reelection with the police union’s endorsement, announced publicly the city council voted unanimously to direct the city attorney and the city manager to “engage” an independent investigator over the matter and have them report back to elected officials.
Amezcua also said officials voted unanimously to release the names of the officers involved and release body-worn camera footage of the arrest “if it is legally determined that great bodily injury occurred as a result of the use of force incident.”
“We understand the concern based on what is plainly visible on the video, we look forward to reviewing all the evidence and conclusions of the two investigations,” Amezcua said.
The video of the Oct. 1 arrest that went viral on Instagram shows a man, now identified as Florentino Lopez, bent over a police car with his arms behind his back arguing with two police officers before one of them threw Lopez onto the street.
The officer then punches Lopez repeatedly in the head as another police officer joins in and holds Lopez’s legs down before two more police officers show up and help restrain him.
The video sparked calls for accountability in a city where the local police union is typically the biggest spender on local elections and the police department is the biggest budget expenditure.
In a Sunday statement, Santa Ana Police Chief Robert Rodriguez said police officials are investigating the arrest.
“Our Department is conducting a thorough review of the incident, including body worn camera footage, reports and the circumstances surrounding the arrest,” reads a statement from Rodriguez posted on the department’s Facebook Sunday.
After publication of this article, city spokesman Paul Eakins confirmed via text message there will be an internal investigation by the Santa Ana police department into the incident as well.
It’s not the first time elected officials have been called on to hold police officers accountable.
Santa Ana Police and city officials faced intense criticism last year over the police department’s response to demonstrations against ICE and federal immigration enforcement, with residents, a handful of council members and one OC Supervisor – calling the police officers’ actions excessive.
City officials and the department also faced criticism over the police killing of Noe Rodriguez in 2024 who was carrying a toy gun. An investigation by the state’s department of justice found insufficient evidence to support criminal prosecution of the officers involved.
City Council Eventually Weighs In
City council members started their regular meeting Tuesday over two hours late after going behind closed doors in part to discuss an anticipated lawsuit over the viral arrest – a discussion thrown on the agenda at the last minute.
After having residents wait roughly another hour for ceremonial presentations and photo ops, council members took turns giving their take on the arrest video after Amezcua’s initial comments about the independent investigation.
Councilman Johnathan Hernandez apologized to Lopez, calling on District Attorney Todd Spitzer – who he criticized as costing taxpayers millions of dollars and failing to hold police accountable – to drop the charges against Lopez and said no resident in Santa Ana should be “brutalized.”
“Furthermore, Todd Spitzer, investigate this matter and file charges. Investigate Santa Ana police officers who violate the public’s trust, and better yet, turn this department and help them have a new leaf in the community,” Hernandez said.
“What we’re seeing is a department that thinks that they are above the law. There are too many examples to point that this department does not respect us. They don’t value us, and they don’t see us as worthy of saving.”
Hernandez, whose previous city council campaign was opposed by the police union, also said police officers shouldn’t be allowed to investigate their colleagues and called on the body-worn camera footage to be released
“They always, for some reason, never find anything wrong,” Hernandez said
“Public records belong to the public. If you are a police officer who works for the public, guess what? When you’re out there on the street, your badge number, your name, your body cam belongs to the people. They request it. We’re going to give it to them. We need to release all these records.”
Councilman Phil Bacerra, who is running for reelection and is endorsed by the Santa Ana police union, said the video raises concerns but he won’t speak to the situation until the investigation is finished.
“If it is ultimately found that the officers did not follow Santa Ana police policy – which that policy is to use only that amount of force that reasonably appears necessary to accomplish a legitimate law enforcement purpose – then I expect justice to be served swiftly and effectively in a way that makes it abundantly clear that we will not tolerate this sort of behavior and those sorts of actions in this city,” Bacerra said.
Councilwoman Jessie Lopez, who is running for state Assembly, apologized to residents for having to wait hours to speak, adding the elected officials had a lengthy backroom discussion on the matter and some of them even yelled at each other before they reached agreement.
Lopez also said what she saw in the video was infuriating and watching and hearing Florentino Lopez’s (no relation to Jessie Lopez) family members’ cries over “somebody that they love be jumped” was difficult.
“That is completely unacceptable behavior from any single member of our community and that includes the employees of this city,” Lopez said “It’s really difficult to ask members of our community to trust their local government, to trust their representatives, when you feel that these things often happen.”
Councilman David Penaloza, who is running against Lopez for state Assembly, said responsibility ultimately sits with the city council and the investigation should be quick because the violent arrest is on video.
“It’s disappointing that we even have to have this conversation and it’s disturbing, but this is something that needs to stop,” said Penaloza, who is endorsed by the police union.
“Regardless of what a person has or has not done or is suspected of, there is no reason why any police officer should take matters into their own hands, like that officer did.”
Councilwoman Thai Viet Phan, responding to residents’ calls to fire the officers, said as a contract city attorney, she has held police accountable but the state has the Peace Officers Bill of Rights and the city cannot violate state law by firing police officers without going through the strict processes laid out in the law.
“My personal opinion and my position has always been: if you violate policy, you should be terminated but California law has POBR,” she said, calling on colleagues running for state assembly to change the law if they’re elected.
“The City of Santa Ana cannot violate state law because if we fire any employee in violation of state law, whether it’s an officer under POBR or other employees under their vested rights, they can not only get their job back, they will get back pay, and they will be able to sue the city.”
Councilman Ben Vazquez, who is up for reelection and whose failed 2024 mayoral campaign was opposed by the police union, said the responsibility of the incident falls on elected officials as well as city leaders, adding the investigation should not only bring accountability but also policy discussions.
“At the end of the day, this happened on our watch,” Vazquez said. “My heart goes out to the Lopez family to bare witness to such an account.”
“We don’t want this to happen again. We don’t want continued violence from our officers to happen.”
Hosam Elattar is a Voice of OC reporter. Contact him at helattar@voiceofoc.org.
