Rains Lucia Stern St. Phalle & Silver

California's premier full-service law firm with an emphasis on the representation of peace officers in disciplinary, criminal, labor, workers' compensation, personal injury and other civil matters.

  • About Us
  • Practice Areas
    • Labor Representation
    • Civil Litigation
    • Personal Injury
      • Example of Case Results
    • Workers’ Compensation
    • DOE Security Clearance Hearings
    • Peace Officers
    • Firefighters
    • EMS Agency Investigations
    • Criminal Defense
    • CalPERS Appeals
  • Our Team
  • Classes
  • Media
    • Bulletins
    • RLS in the News
  • Resources
    • Links
    • Resources
    • Newsletters
  • Clients
  • Contact Us
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy

Andy Lopez Supporters Protest Return of Santa Rosa Deputy Who Shot, Killed Teen

December 12, 2013 by Hien Nguyen

From: NBC Bay Area

12/11/13

Rowdy protests in Santa Rosa Tuesday against the fatal shooting of a 13-year-old boy by a Sonoma County sheriff’s deputy outside in October led to vandalism at the Sonoma County jail and one arrest, the sheriff’s office said.

The crowd of about 80 to 100 people gathered outside Santa Rosa City Hall just before 5 p.m. then marched to the jail. A door window of the main jail lobby was broken including by protesters who were young children, ages 4-10.

The protesters used wooden protest signs and crosses to vandalize the door but left after a dispersal order and marched to the sheriff’s main office. They attempted to move police barriers in front of the office but did not break through and then dispersed.

Deputies made one arrest for suspicion of violation of probation and obstructing a police officer. That person was identified by the sheriff’s office as Jose Godoy, 24, of Santa Rosa. He was stopped leaving the scene in a vehicle and booked into jail.

Earlier, more than a dozen speakers attended the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors meeting Tuesday afternoon to protest the return to work today of the Sonoma County sheriff’s deputy who fatally shot 13-year-old Andy Lopez.

Their appearance was part of a Day of Resistance to the Reinstatement of Deputy Erick Gelhaus. He reported back to work this week for desk duty in the armory, but hopes to eventually return to work, according to his attorney, Terry Leoni.

Gelhaus previously was on leave since Oct. 22, the day Lopez was killed.

Among the speakers were several members of “Women in White.”

“Do you know what Sonoma County Justice means,” asked Dara McCuistion of Santa Rosa. “It means you kill a Mexican kid and you get two months paid vacation and your job back.”

Gelhaus thought the teen was carrying a real AK-47 when he shot him. That gun turned out to be an airsoft BB gun painted to look real.

Leoni said the deputy is still very emotional about what happened, but she believes he’ll be cleared of any wrongdoing.

“It’s been very difficult for him, emotionally, to see this family, to realize Andy Lopez was 13-years-old,” Leoni said. “That doesn’t lessen the fact at that moment he was faced with what he believed was an AK-47.”

Still, some community members do not buy the deputy’s story and want to see Gelhaus behind bars.

“We will stick to this,” a tearful Nicole Guerra said. “We don’t care how long it takes, justice is going to be served.”

Filed Under: RLS In The News Tagged With: terry-r-leoni

Related News

  • Community Violence Solutions: The Unsung Heroes of the CCC Justice System
  • Richmond: Police identify officer who shot, killed man during fight
  • Hard questions raised by officers wearing cameras
  • Sonoma deputy in toy gun killing back on street
  • Erick Gelhaus, deputy in Andy Lopez shooting, returning to patrol

Consultation Form

Offices across California to serve you.
Contact us now to schedule a consultation.
Contact form not loading? Click here!
Rains Lucia Stern St. Phalle & Silver, PC publishes this website as a service to our clients and other friends for informational purposes only. It is not intended to be used as a substitute for specific legal advice or opinions, and the transmission of information through this website is not intended to create an attorney-client relationship between sender and receiver. Internet subscribers and online readers should not act upon this information without seeking professional counsel. By providing a telephone number and submitting the form you are consenting to be contacted by SMS text message. Message & data rates may apply. Reply STOP to opt out of further messaging.

© 2025 Rains Lucia Stern St. Phalle & Silver, PC. All Rights Reserved. | Privacy Policy | Disclaimer

Click here for our privacy policy. We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. Read our privacy policy for more details.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie settingsACCEPTREJECT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

Please read our full privacy policy by clicking here.

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.

Please see our privacy policy for more information.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT
  • Contact Us

  • News Alerts

  • Privacy Policy

Official logo for Rains Lucia Stern St. Phalle & Silver
Rains Lucia Stern St. Phalle & Silver Logo
  • About Us
  • Practice Areas
    ▼
    • Labor Representation
    • Civil Litigation
    • Personal Injury
      ▼
      • Example of Case Results
    • Workers’ Compensation
    • DOE Security Clearance Hearings
    • Peace Officers
    • Firefighters
    • EMS Agency Investigations
    • Criminal Defense
    • CalPERS Appeals
  • Our Team
  • Classes
  • Media
    ▼
    • Bulletins
    • RLS in the News
  • Resources
    ▼
    • Links
    • Resources
    • Newsletters
  • Clients
  • Contact Us
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
Hotline phone numbers. Northern California: 925-609-1699. Southern California: 310-393-1486.