EL MONTE POLICE TELL THEIR SIDE OF STORY IN FATAL DRUG RAID

Shooting: Officials say evidence shows that house where man was mistakenly
killed had links to an alleged dealer. They also display guns found at site.

Hoping to counter public criticism, El Monte police officials Thursday
presented evidence that they say supports their decision to conduct a drug
raid in Compton last year that led to the fatal shooting of an unarmed
grandfather.

Relatives of the dead man, Mario Paz, have filed a wrongful death lawsuit
against the cities of El Monte and Compton, alleging that police officers
made a fatal error by shooting at Paz, then tried to cover up their mistake
by intimidating witnesses.

Paz, 65, was kneeling at his bedside when he was shot in front of his wife,
authorities have said. Police say the shooting was justified.

El Monte city officials said at a news conference Thursday that they had
plenty of evidence supporting their belief that the Compton home where Paz
and his family lived was linked to an alleged drug dealer named Marcos
Beltran Lizarraga.

Giving the city's first full account of the Aug. 9 raid, El Monte Assistant
Chief Bill Ankeny said Lizarraga used the address of the Paz family home
for bank, cellular phone and Department of Motor Vehicles records.

Police displayed a photograph of the .22-caliber pistol they say was later
found near Paz's body. They also played taped interviews with members of
his family indicating that at least some of them realized they were the
subject of a police raid. Family members had previously said that in the
chaos of the incident, they feared they were under attack by burglars.

Ankeny said the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department worked almost six
months to complete its investigation of the shooting. He said the city
called a news conference to tell its side of the story, based in part on
the investigation.

Attorney Johnnie L. Cochran Jr. filed a wrongful death lawsuit on behalf of
the Paz family last month.

Attorney Cameron Stewart, who is also working for the family, said Thursday
that none of the evidence presented by police refutes the contention that
the shooting was unjustified. She acknowledged that Lizarraga used to live
next door to the Paz family and sometimes used their home as a mail drop.

The news conference, Stewart said, was an effort to polish the city's
tarnished image. But in doing so, she said, El Monte officials are "adding
damage to a good family name."

Police said the hunt for Lizarraga began in June when officers searched two
cars and found 400 pounds of marijuana, as well as evidence that guided
them to Lizarraga's home in Chino.

When they searched the Chino home, Ankeny said, they found documents
pointing to a house in Compton and to another in Valinda. They arrested
Lizarraga at the scene. A judge issued search warrants for the two homes,
thought to be used to store illegal drugs. At noon on Aug. 9, police found
400 pounds of marijuana and three AK-47 rifles at the Valinda house, Ankeny
said. They arrested Lizarraga's brother there, but subsequently dropped the
charges.

That night, officers raided the Paz home on West 131st Street.

As officers scrambled through the house, Paz reached under his bed for
$10,000 in cash he had stored there, on the assumption the intruders were
there to rob him, family members have said. Sgt. George Hopkins stormed
into the darkened bedroom and opened fire, killing Paz.

After the shooting, police said Paz had been reaching for a drawer when he
was killed. But on Thursday, Eugene Ramirez, an attorney representing the
city, gave a different account.

He said Paz was grabbing for the drawer when Hopkins entered, and was
repeatedly ordered to surrender.

"Mr. Paz turned and looked at Mr. Hopkins and then put his hands under the
bed," Ramirez said. "He suddenly grabbed something . . . and turned his
back to Mr. Hopkins. Mr. Paz became an immediate and credible threat to Mr.
Hopkins."

Officials showed a picture of a .22-caliber Intratec Scorpion pistol with a
20-round clip, calling it an assault weapon, which they said was found in
an open drawer next to Paz. Hopkins told investigators he did not see the
gun before he shot Paz.

Police found two other handguns and a .22-caliber rifle in the home. No
drugs were found.

At the news conference, Ramirez played two taped interviews conducted by
sheriff's investigators. In one, Paz's son Jorge acknowledged that officers
clearly identified themselves. The SWAT members "were saying, 'Search
warrant, search warrant, this is the police,' " he said on the tape.

In another interview, the tape of which was difficult to understand, Maria
Paz, the victim's wife, said the money found on their bed came from a man
nicknamed "El Central" who had asked them to hold the cash. Maria Paz told
The Times last year that her husband had withdrawn the money from a Tijuana
bank for fear of a Y2K problem. She has financial records that support the
claim.

"Part of the bank name where they withdrew the money is called El Central,"
Stewart said.