Defense questions Pasco police intent and use of guns in response to family fight

The Pasco officers who responded to a domestic fight in September 2017 made a plan to “go lethal” before they even walked into the home, a defense attorney told jurors Monday.

Edwin Espejo barely knew what was going on when three officers squeezed into his basement, with three more behind them in the stairway, said attorney Gary Metro.

The 31-year-old father of six drank some beers earlier that night while watching a fight on TV, was tired and just wanted to go to bed, he said.

So when faced with officers with their guns drawn, a surprised Espejo’s immediate response was to tell them to “get the f--- out of here.”

“He’s a man sitting in bed with his children after a fight with his wife, and here he’s looking at a life-or-death situation,” said Metro.

In his opening statements to a Franklin County jury, Metro claims that at least one officer should have talked to Espejo’s wife before police went downstairs with a plan to kill a man.

‘A simple’ family argument

That response was all because a phone call was made where emergency dispatchers heard shouting, he said.

“Mr. Espejo is sorry about the way he acted that night and wishes he was more cooperative, but this is a case about a family argument,” said Metro. “This was a simple case of a family having a fight and there being a disagreement of what was going to happen next. And now we have a man charged with (attempted) first-degree murder.”

But Deputy Prosecutor Dave Corkrum countered that the 911 call involved more than just yelling and shouting. The preteen caller was insistent: “Come quick, come quick. Get the cops here now.”

“Officers on duty that evening, they hear the call that no one ever wants to hear,” said Corkrum. “A call-out for a domestic violence incident is one of the most dangerous calls a police officer can ever receive.”

Officers Matt Griffin and John D’Aquila and Reserve Officer David Dillsworth were the first three to descend the wooden stairs and enter the cramped basement.

After hearing Espejo express his love to three of his kids and tell them goodbye, Griffin ordered the man to show his hands -- both for his own safety and that of the officers, said Corkrum.

A ‘lethal situation’ for officers

But Espejo, a convicted felon, didn’t listen to Griffin’s repeated demands.

Officers had their guns drawn because it was a “lethal situation,” especially since Espejo was near a pistol and told them he wasn’t going back to jail, he said.

Espejo stood up and took off his shirt like he wanted to fight the officers, continuing to ignore Griffin’s orders to walk or crawl toward him, said Corkrum.

So Griffin called for “less lethal,” meaning to hit Espejo with a Taser shock.

But after the probes failed to make a good connection, Espejo fell back onto the bed and grabbed the .45-caliber Ruger, he said.

Then the officers saw a muzzle flash in the dimly lit basement.

Espejo fired all seven bullets from his pistol. The officers shot a total 21 rounds, hitting Espejo several times in the lower half of his body.

“Unloading the gun until you couldn’t fire anymore shots, that’s the intent of murder,” said Corkrum.

Police saved Espejo’s life

He would have bled to death if it weren’t for the lifesaving measures of the three officers that Espejo tried to kill that night, he said.

Espejo, now 32, is on trial in Franklin County Superior Court for the Sept. 16, 2017, incident at 910 S. Ninth Ave.

He is charged with three counts of attempted first-degree murder and one count each of second-degree unlawful possession of a gun, fourth-degree assault with domestic violence and interfering with the reporting of domestic violence.

Metro questioned if Espejo even handled the pistol that night, and asked jurors to pay close attention to the evidence and witness testimony.

Jeni Copeland, a dispatcher with the Southeast Communications Center, was the first witness and introduced the 911 call from Julian Ordaz, now 14, who was at the house that night.

On the call played for jurors, Ordaz says he “heard a lot of yelling and I heard a lot of hitting” coming from the basement and that his cousin asked him to call for help.

Metro asked the dispatcher how many physical disturbance calls they can receive in a night.

Copeland said it depends if it is a weekend or a holiday, but on average SECOMM may get 20 to 30 calls in a 24-hour period. She added that most of those aren’t between strangers.

Kids were scared

Ordaz briefly testified Monday about being woken up that night by his cousins who had run upstairs.

“They were scared. I don’t know if they were crying,” he said.

Ordaz said they all went outside and, at the request of Edwin Espejo Jr., he called 911. He said he never saw anybody get hit because he was either on the main floor of his house or out in the yard waiting for police.

The trial is expected to last a few days, though it ended early Monday and has a delayed start Tuesday because of the snowstorm.