https://www.liberationnews.org/san-diego-residents-demand-justice-for-dennis-carolino-and-toby-diller/
San Diego residents demand justice for Dennis Carolino and Toby Diller
By Carter LumMar 15, 2020
388
Several dozen people took to the streets on March 7 in City Heights.
They gathered to oppose the extrajudicial killings of Dennis Carolino
and Toby Diller by San Diego Police officers.
The Carolino family organized the protest in conjunction with Anakbayan
and Migrante San Diego. Other organizations in attendance included the
Asian Solidarity Collective, Socialist Unity Party, Pillars of the
Community, Colectivo Zapatista, Showing Up for Racial Justice, the Party
for Socialism and Liberation and more.
A multinational community, united
The day began with speeches from organizers and activists from around
the city. Each stood up to denounce the U.S. police state and the
violence produced by it. They also made sure to uplift the experiences
and voices of those affected by police violence, specifically the Diller
and Carolino families.
Following multiple passionate speakers, the march proceeded through the
neighborhood before stopping at the City Heights’ Police Station. There,
family members had the opportunity to stand up and confront the police
department as officers watched from the rooftop and parking lot.
The procession then meandered through residential areas as organizers
handed out informational leaflets and stood up in the face of police
intimidation. Squad cars trailed and flanked the march as officers
engaged in jeers and laughter in the faces of several attendees.
Injustice for Dennis Carolino
On Aug. 24, 2019, SDPD responded to a call where a 52-year-old Filipino
man, Dennis Carolino, was experiencing a mental health-related episode
in his own backyard. His aunt called 911 to ask for help to bring her
nephew to a mental health facility.
Despite knowing it was a mental health-related call, the police engaged
Carolino without waiting for the Psychiatric Emergency Response Team.
The (edited) body cam footage shows an interaction between the officers
and Carolino. The interaction ended abruptly when officers used a taser
to subdue him, before shooting him seven times. After Carolino fell to
the ground, officers quickly handcuffed the man they had just killed.
The case of Toby Diller
Witnesses account that Toby Diller, 31, was drinking a beer outside
around 3:30 p.m on Jan. 24. Officers Devion Johnson and Benjamin Downing
approached Diller for a stop as he attempted to finish the dregs of his
beer. Officers escalated the situation and Diller was tackled to the
ground before being shot in the back of the neck. SDPD Lt. Matt Dobbs
attempted to justify the use of force by claiming: “Diller was agitated.
And resisted arrest.” Even if that were true, how is death a fitting
punishment for resisting?
Unsurprisingly, bourgeois media parroted the police narrative. The fact
is that Toby Diller was never given due process or tried in a court of law.
After a Community Review Board meeting in regards to the Diller killing,
the police announced they are not investigating the case. Oak Park
Community Council member Lupe Diaz said conflicting reports about the
incident leave many questions about why two San Diego Police Department
officers shot and killed an unarmed man in response to a simple
violation of drinking alcohol in public.
“I love Toby the most. I never wanted to give up on him. I love Toby
very very much,” sister Nikita Diller said. “I’m concerned. I’m
grieving. I just miss my brother.”
“I shouldn’t be burying my brother,” Robert Diller said tearfully. “I
wanted my brother to have a normal life. I just wanted my brother to get
married, have kids.”
The epidemic of police brutality
The killings of Toby Diller and Dennis Carolino represent two cases of
police brutality, which has consistently been on the rise. There were
1,004 cases of “use of fatal force” by police against civilians in 2019,
compared to 992 in 2018.
In a speech, Jose Cortes — who just ran for Congress in CA50 — drew
comparisons to the killing of Alfred Olango. Olango was 38 when he was
shot and killed by police after they were called for emergency
psychiatric aid.
Jose Cortes
Police violence is not new to San Diego residents, nor is it new to the
indigenous Kumeyaay people. Brutality is a physical representation of
the exploitation and terrorization of working-class and Native
neighborhoods by police. Despite witness testimony in the case of Toby
Diller that counters the police account of events, as well as body cam
footage in the killing of Dennis Carolino, none of the four officers
involved is facing charges for their actions.
No justice, no peace!
The people of San Diego took to the streets to demand justice for Dennis
Carolino, Toby Diller, and all victims of police brutality. Given the
history of policing in San Diego and the rest of the United States, it
is unlikely that the officers involved in the Carolino and Diller cases
will be brought to justice.
The family and community have made the following demands:
1. Independent investigation of the shooting of Dennis Carolino and all
cases of police brutality in San Diego.
2. Fire and prosecute the two police officers with no pay.
3. Police Training and education on Mental Health.
4. Divest from SDPD and reinvest in Social Services: Mental Health Services.
5. Indemnification for the Carolino Family and all families of victims
of police brutality.
The Party for Socialism and Liberation supports these demands and calls
for the dismantling of both the racist police state and mass
incarceration. All perpetrators of police brutality and violence should
be prosecuted. Every political prisoner should be freed. Without a
doubt, reparations must be paid to all nations oppressed by U.S.
imperialist and colonialist violence. The killings of Dennis Carolino
and Toby Diller further demonstrate that there cannot be “liberty and
justice for all” under capitalism.
Anti-racism, Police brutality, San diego
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