Video: San Jose Police body camera footage shows fatal Nov. 9, 2019 shooting of Andrew Roberts.
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SAN JOSE — Newly released police body-camera footage shows a dramatic struggle between two officers and a man who pulled out a gun during a Nov. 9 traffic stop on Highway 85, which ended in the fatal shooting of the suspect by a San Jose police officer.
In the videos, provided to this news organization in response to a public-records request, a body-worn camera from San Jose police Officer Matt Rodriguez captures the shooting of 29-year-old Andrew Joseph Roberts, after he pulled a Glock pistol from his waistband in an apparent attempt to draw on Rodriguez.
Moments earlier, Rodriguez can be heard telling Roberts to exit the Lexus SUV, after Roberts’ father, who was driving the vehicle, reached across his son and opened the passenger-side door. The footage shows Roberts refusing to respond, instead looking at his phone; when Rodriguez moves to arrest him, Roberts reaches for his waistband.
“Hey, hey, stop. Give me your (expletive) hand,” Rodriguez says in the video, before quickly shouting, “He’s got a gun!”
In the video, Sgt. Lee Tassio, who was working with Rodriguez as part of the San Jose Police Department’s Violent Crimes Enforcement Team, is then seen and heard using his Taser on Roberts, who continued to resist. Rodriguez has a hold of Roberts’ hand that is holding the pistol, assuring other officers “I got it” as he and the suspect continue to struggle.
Around the same time, a third officer pulls Roberts’ father out of the vehicle.
Tassio then yells “I’m gonna (expletive) shoot you man,” and then “I’m gonna shoot” and “I’m gonna (expletive) kill him.”
Tassio fired a single shot from his service pistol, fatally wounding Roberts, who died at the scene.
After the shooting, Rodriguez body-worn camera shows him pulling a gun off of the suspect. Police initially described the weapon as a 9mm pistol, but have now said it was a Glock .40 caliber pistol with an extended magazine.
Police Chief Eddie Garcia said the shooting was one of the most harrowing he had seen in his three decades with the department.
“I’ll remember this one, especially when you think about all the possibilities. It’s sobering,” Garcia said. “It definitely makes you appreciate the men and women of this department and the work they’re doing.”
Police had been tracking Roberts, an Aptos resident, since an Oct. 24 traffic stop near Stevens Creek Boulevard and Monroe Street by the same VCET detail that Rodriguez and Tassio were working for on the day of the shooting. During that stop, police said, Roberts handed over his license to officers, then backed his car into a police vehicle and drove away. The officers decided against pursuing Roberts to avoid a high-speed chase, and instead began tracking the suspect.
According to police and court records, Roberts was convicted of being a felon in possession of a handgun and ammunition in 2015, and sentenced to two years in prison before being granted early release. In September 2017, he was again convicted on similar charges and sentenced to 32 months in prison. He served half of the sentence and was freed. He also had past criminal convictions for arson, burglary, auto theft, grand theft, and was a registered arsonist.
On the afternoon of Nov. 9, police got word that Roberts was in the area of Regional Medical Center in East San Jose. VCET officers tracked him to the Lexus SUV traveling southbound on Highway 85, and stopped the car on the side of the freeway.
Tassio, an 18-year police veteran who was involved in a fatal on-duty shooting in 2011, and Rodriguez, an 11-year veteran, were placed on paid administrative leave in the wake of the Nov. 9 incident. The shooting is currently being reviewed by the SJPD homicide unit and the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office.
So far this year, there have been four officer-involved shootings in San Jose, all of which have been fatal.
WATCH THE VIDEO
Body-camera footage of the Nov. 9 fatal police shooting on Highway 85 in San Jose can be viewed online at bayareane.ws/Highway85shooting.
