KMPH Fox 26 Central San Joaquin Valley News Source in Fresno, California Entertainment, News, Sports and Weather | Group Calls for Police Chief to Resign

Group Calls for Police Chief to Resign

Fresno - Dozens of people gathered in front of the Fresno Police Department, calling on Police Chief Jerry Dyer to step down, or be fired.

This, in response to a string of officer involved shootings, that have killed several suspects.

"It's shoot first, ask questions later.  If that can't be stopped then chief dyer needs to go.   We're saying he needs to go," said Juan Avitia, a protest organizer with the grassroots community group Fresno Brown Berets.

Among the protestors, relatives of 32-year-old Steven Vargas who died when an officer opened fire, after he crashed into a parked van on McKinley Avenue.

"He was not on parole, he did not have a weapon. How do you justify shooting someone 9 times?" said Jessica Villanueva, a relative of Vargas.

In each incident, Chief Dyer says the officers found themselves in a situation where they feared for their lives.

But family members say, that doesn't console them.

"We want justice. We have to stand up against this, that was not okay for them to kill him," said Becky Barrena, a relative of Vargas.

So far this year, there have been 11 officer involved shootings in Fresno, 6 of them deadly.

Last year, there were 8 officer involved shootings, and two were fatal.

The chief has said each shooting was justified.

"We don't want to sit back and watch police shoot people, and mothers grieve, and not do anything about it. We want to show the community, it can be done, you can stand up to the police," said Avitia.

The Fresno Police Department says they have no comment about today's protest.