Cops who shot and killed ‘ER’ actress Vanessa Marquez won’t be prosecuted

Two police officers who fatally shot ER actress Vanessa Marquez inside her home in 2018 will not face prosecution.

Los Angeles County lawmakers have opted not to file criminal charges against South Pasadena Officers Gilberto Carrillo and Christopher Perez, ruling they acted legally when they shot the 49-year-old after she pulled a replica firearm on them during a wellness check, according to the Los Angeles Times.

“In this incident, the evidence demonstrates that Carrillo and Perez actually and reasonably believed Marquez posed an imminent threat of great bodily injury or death,” head deputy district attorney Shannon Presby wrote in the memo.

Cops were dispatched to Marquez’s apartment after a friend called to report concerns for the actress’ well-being.

Upon seeing one of the officers inside her home, Marquez suffered a seizure, according to a police bodycam video, and the cops spent an hour trying to calm her down.

Officer Carrillo told Marquez she was going to be taken to a hospital on a psychiatric hold, prompting the actress to grab a pair of scissors and what officers thought was a handgun that she pointed at them.

When she refused to drop what appeared to be a loaded weapon, Carrillo and Perez opened fire.

After the shooting, the officers retrieved a BB gun.

Marquez suffered two gunshot wounds and was taken to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead. The following year, her mother, Delia McElfresh, filed a wrongful death claim against the city of South Pasadena.

The actress appeared as nurse Wendy Goldman on ER between 1994 and 1997.

She spoke openly on social media about her issues with celiac disease and seizures.

A year before her death, she accused her ER co-star George Clooney of helping to blacklist her from the series. Clooney has publicly denied the allegations.


Image Source:*montrealgazette.com

Source:montrealgazette.com