Defense Attorney Andrea Sullivan of Lakeport put Humboldt County’s Sheriff Office in the hot seat Thursday, offering a biting review of a video provided by law enforcement during a press conference she called in Eureka. This video detailed a series of crimes ending in a police-involved shooting on April 18, 2023.
The original incident allegedly involved multiple vehicle accidents–several people were injured, a police pursuit, a shot fired at an officer, and ultimately, the shooting and hospitalization of both suspects–-half-brothers Jesse and Brandon Widmark.
The violent incident which ended in close proximity to a preschool, a hospital campus, and several private residences put both brothers – accused of an armed robbery earlier that day – in the hospital with multiple gunshot wounds following a flurry of gunfire from responding officers. Despite over a dozen officers ultimately responding to the incident, only one, Deputy Chad Crotty, actually activated his body-worn camera, and he says the camera was activated accidentally.
The timing of the shots fired that injured Jesse Widmark are disputed by his defense attorney, who asserts that Widmark was shot by law enforcement while Widmark can be seen attempting to surrender as he lay on the ground. When asked what Jesse Widmark remembered of the shooting, Sullivan said the defense was not ready to comment on that.
Attorney “Andrea” Anakalia Kaluna Sullivan called Thursday’s press conference in Eureka to reveal the original, unedited body-worn camera footage of the incident, and to discuss that she believed that an officer or officers that day shot her client while he attempted to surrender.
The footage was shown to reporters at the Eureka press conference Thursday as Humboldt County Sheriff William Honsal looked on from the back row, taking in the defense attorney’s presentation alleging excessive force was used. The Sheriff did not take questions during the meeting with Attorney Sullivan, but did offer a statement from outside the press conference, wholly refuting that assertion that the Critical Incident Video had been manipulated in a nefarious way.
Sheriff Honsal denied that the phrase “tampered with” was accurate in reference to the edited narrative video released describing the timeline of the day’s events which included the body-worn camera footage in question. Noting that he was required to produce the video in compliance with California Law, Sheriff Honsal told us he felt the video was an accurate reflection of the day’s traumatic events.
To Blur, Or Not to Blur
The body-worn camera (BWC) footage released by law enforcement in June of 2023 was widely viewed by the public after its release. Sheriff Honsal told us that it was edited on legal advice in part to obfuscate the face of 18-year-old suspect Jesse Widmark even though his name and image had already been given in an earlier press release.
The Humboldt County Sheriff’s public video narrative and timeline of events was created in-house, and according to Sheriff Wiliam Honsal, was in part blurred intentionally in order to protect viewers from the graphic image of Jesse Widmark’s bleeding bullet wounds, but was not intended to obscure the full image, as he laid on the lawn near bushes in a front yard, nearly blending in at times with the muddled pixilation of the surroundings in the video.
When asked about why she called the press conference and revealed the raw video, Sullivan told us she wanted the public to be able to judge for themselves whether or not her client had been shot after attempting to surrender, without relying on the curated video synopsis produced by the Sheriff’s staff, at the time. “My motivation in releasing the raw footage comparison was to show people what they were really looking at from the press release video,” Sullivan said. “The blurred face of Jesse Widmark just faded into the background.”
Sullivan argues that in the Humboldt County Sheriff’s edited video that it wasn’t easy to see that Jesse was surrendering as the officers fired. Sullivan explained that because of the blurred portions of the video, the “disembodied hands” of Jesse Widmark were not clearly recognizable without the obvious facial features that a viewer would recognize as “human” in the quickly moving, poor quality video.
In contrast, in the unedited video, Jesse Widmark can more clearly be seen laying down and raising both of his hands signaling surrender, as officers approach.
Some experts have questioned the impact of videos produced by law enforcement on public opinion. A recent report by Nigel Duara of Cal Matters states, “Critics allege that the problem with the condensed, heavily-edited version of the body camera footage released by law enforcement agencies is that they shape public opinion about a person’s death or injury at the hands of the police long before the department in question releases all the facts in the case or the full, raw video.”
Although the release of BWC footage is intended to bolster public confidence through transparency, in this case, Sullivan feels that the curated video hinders her client’s right to fair trial which relies on an unprejudiced jury pool.
Not only does Sullivan assert that the face and form of Jesse Widmark is unnecessarily and gratuitously obscured in the Sheriff’s public video, but the attorney also questions the timing of the shooting of her client. “I believe the reason his face is blurred is because [people] would watch that video, and come away with an overwhelming inference that [the officer] shot him when he was surrendered,” said Sullivan.
When Sheriff Honsal was asked why there was a near total failure to capture footage from the body cameras worn by officers that day, Honsal said, “I take that very seriously,” noting that if there were cause for discipline, that he would take action to address any negligence on the part of his officers, but clarified that in this case, this officers were relatively new to the system, and that additional training with the cell-phone style cameras was needed at the time of the April 18, 2023 incident.
Honsal explained by phone, following the Eureka press conference, that though there were a number of law enforcement officers at the scene, some of the officers were dealing with traffic and other issues not necessarily involved in the action, he regretted that only one deputy managed to capture footage of the events.
As Jesse Widmark’s defense counsel, Sullivan disputes the statements made by Sgt. Conan Moore during a preliminary hearing in which he said that Brandon Widmark is actually the subject shot at in the video – rather than his half-brother Jesse seen lying in the yard.
According to Sheriff Honsal, however, although Brandon Widmark is not visible at any point in the footage shown, upon exiting the vehicle, the officers are directing their fire at the brother who cannot be seen in the footage – not the brother that is seen surrendering.
Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office’s policy regarding appropriate use of force approves firing on subjects or moving vehicles which the deputy “reasonably believes to be a threat”, particularly if there are “no other reasonable means available to avert the threat” or if the danger “is directed at the deputy or others.” Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) Use of Force Standards and Guidelines of 2021 offers insight on the matter of discharge of firearms in similar circumstances. Standard 8 advises, “Officers should only discharge a firearm at or from a moving vehicle to counter an imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury to the officer or another individual, by an occupant in the vehicle.”
Going further in explaining the need for cautious, tactful actions by officers even in heated, fast-paced moments of action, the guidelines continue, reading, “[I]n all situations, officers are expected to exercise sound judgment based on reverence for human life. Any deviations from the provisions of an agency’s policy should be examined rigorously on a case-by-case basis.” The POST guidelines state that “whether the officer’s life or the lives of others were in immediate peril” should be taken into consideration, adding that the use of extreme force could be appropriate if “there was no reasonable or apparent means of escape.”
The only body worn camera (BWC) footage of the incident is jarring, grainy, and blurry at times, making it difficult to make sense of. In addition to only having one BWC recording of the incident, there was no dash camera footage available from the scene – where more than half a dozen police vehicles of various types were involved – according to Sullivan, due to the majority of those vehicles simply not being equipped with dashboard cameras.
Sheriff Honsal rebuffed the Sullivan’s assertion that the video provided to the public in the light of the Critical Incident Review shows anything other than dedicated officers doing their best to secure a volatile crime scene. According to Honsal, Sgt. Moore’s testimony thus far in the matter has been that he can be seen firing at an unseen subject near the rear, who he identifies as Brandon Widmark, on the opposite side of the red truck – but not at Jesse Widmark, who can be seen lying in front of him in the short video.
However, Sullivan told us, “I think that there is an overwhelming feeling that when a person would watch this [unedited] video, and find that the deputy… shot Jesse when he was on the ground, surrendered. I think that’s an overwhelming inference, by watching that video.”
Attorney Alleges HCSO Put Thumb on Scales of Justice
Although Sullivan has already taken the case through a preliminary hearing, having the judge find that the case was made by the DA, demonstrating that there was enough evidence to take the charges to trial – Sullivan asked for a change in venue, but was denied.
Jesse Widmark is preparing to go forward to trial, among other things, accused of attempted murder of a peace officer which could mean life in prison for Widmark, who was 18 at the time of the events. His attorney fears that the Humboldt County jury pool has already been compromised, taking into account their impression of the widely circulated critical incident review video. Sullivan fears that the edits included in the video (the blurred portion of her client’s figure), and the narrative presented as to the day’s events, painted a skewed picture in the minds of potential jurors. As far as she is concerned, law enforcement’s response that day in April of 2023 was “chaotic… to the point where no one thought to activate their body worn camera, or make sure it was on, even though they were responding in their vehicle.”
In regard to the dispute about when Jesse Widmark was shot by law enforcement, Sullivan notes, “…[T]hat’s probably something that’s going to have to be flushed out at trial.” In response to a query at the press conference, she further remarked, “[W]e, as a society, generally do not shoot surrendering suspects. And there’s a civil liability aspect to that too, as well.. .”
In the aftermath of this incident, Honsal told us his department is spot checking deputy use of body-worn cameras by implementing a “random audit” of proper activation.
The matter is scheduled to go forward to trial on June 24, which will be open to the public, according to Humboldt County DA Stacey Eads, who was not at liberty to comment further. Deputy District Attorney Luke Bernthal is handling the prosecution of the Widmark brothers, on a host of charges, including attempted murder of a peace officer.
These gentleman.came only a few inches froem side swiping my prius at a high rate of speed on myrtle and west going the wrong w, god bless em for all that they do only wish they would have pumped full of lead more!ay up myrtle where I was in the turn lane at the light then ran the intersection almost doing a head on with another prius only moments b efore deputies put a stop to the shenanagens
Thank goodness you’re ok! Everyone forgets what people like these criminals are doing to our communities the moment an attorney steps in and attempts to turn the cops into the problem.
Sad times for sure
How the fuck am I supposed to trust anything when the person writing this can’t even distinguish the difference between a clip and a magazine????
Support your local Police doing what needed to be done.
The courts do not met out justice anymore with criminal defense lawyers as Justices!
I support you law enforcement.