From [HERE] Fresno civil rights attorney Kevin Little has filed a federal lawsuit alleging Fresno police acted illegally when offices shot and killed 29-year-old Roberto Corchado on March 4.

Little is suing the City of Fresno, Police Chief Paco Balderrama and two officers involved in the shooting, Luke Tran and Bryce Hammond, the attorney said Tuesday.

City spokesperson Sontaya Rose said Tuesday that officials cannot comment on pending litigation.

In a 32-page wrongful death lawsuit filed Friday, Little accuses the police of shooting at Corchado, a man with a lengthy criminal history, while he had his hands up and his back to the officers.

“This was clearly an unjustified shooting,” Little said during a press conference at his downtown Fresno law office.

Fatal shooting by Fresno police

Police said on the day of the shooting they were attempting to stop Corchado, who had an outstanding bench warrant for failing to appear in court and for evading police.

As Corchado was heading west on Herndon Avenue near Ingram Avenue, one of the officers used a maneuver with his vehicle to disable Corchado’s 2009 Chevrolet Malibu.

The Malibu came to rest on the center median and what happened next is in dispute. Police said Corchado fired a gun at officers, striking one officer in this bullet-proof vest. Also struck multiple times was one of the police cars.

Police also reported finding freshly spent casings inside the car and finding two firearms in or near the car.

According to the lawsuit, Corchado got out of the car with his hands raised high when Hammond ordered him to get on the ground.

Hammond is alleged to have fired five rounds into Corchado’s back and head. A photo contained in the lawsuit shows the wounds to Corchado’s body.

Lawyer says shooting ‘illegal’

Little has criticized the police “narrative” that Corchado was a dangerous man and their use of what he called a “heavily edited and curated” video showing the shooting.

He looked at a video of the same event taken by a citizen and synchronized it with the police video. The video taken by the citizen shows Corchado with his back to officers when the shooting starts. The police video does not, Little said.

“That makes it clearly an illegal shooting,” he said.

Little said Corchado did not represent an immediate threat to officers or anyone else with his back turned and his hands up.

Little is seeking financial damages to be determined at trial.

“I want to leave it in the hands of regular people, the jury, not police officers to determine if this shooting was justified,” Little said.