Killing of Kelly Thomas

Background

Kelly Thomas was born to Ron Thomas, a former Orange County Sheriff's deputy, and Cathy Thomas. Diagnosed with schizophrenia, he was well known among Fullerton's homeless population. Between 1990 and 2011, Thomas had 92 police encounters, ranging from minor infractions to a guilty plea for assault with a deadly weapon sixteen years prior. Officer Manuel Ramos had been placed on a performance improvement plan after comments he made in January 2010 violated department standards.

Incident

On July 5, 2011, around 8:30 p.m., Fullerton police responded to a false report of vandalism near the Fullerton Transportation Center. They encountered Thomas, who was shirtless and disheveled. According to officers, Thomas was uncooperative when they tried to search him, and backup was called. Officer Ramos put on latex gloves and said, 'They are getting ready to fuck you up,' to which Thomas replied, 'Start punching, dude.'

Video shows Thomas sitting and non-aggressive but uncooperative. After officers grabbed him for stolen mail, Thomas screamed in pain and said, 'Okay, I'm sorry!' and 'I'm trying!' Officers used a taser on him up to five times, and Thomas screamed for his father. Six officers subdued him; Ramos said, 'I just smashed his face to hell,' after hitting Thomas with the blunt end of a flashlight.

Thomas was taken to St. Jude Medical Center, then transferred to UC Irvine Medical Center with severe head, face, and neck injuries. A paramedic testified he was first told to attend to a minor injury on an officer before noticing Thomas unconscious in a pool of blood.

Aftermath

The beating story broke before Thomas's death. The Orange County district attorney began an investigation on July 7, 2011, and the FBI later became involved. The ACLU praised the FBI's involvement, citing the district attorney's 'abysmal' record on police shooting investigations. Initial reports claimed Thomas was combative and two officers suffered broken bones, but the police department later confirmed no officers had broken bones and no one else had significant injuries.

Department supervisors were criticized for letting officers watch the incident video before writing reports; in 2020, it was revealed supervisors later changed those reports. On July 18, 2011, a large protest was organized outside the Fullerton Police Department, including by Thomas's father. At an August 2 city council meeting, over 70 speakers criticized the police; the city attorney said the council could not respond. On August 6, a street protest of hundreds called for release of surveillance video.

In late September 2011, the officers were arrested on murder charges; local law enforcement raised money for their bail and defense.