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San Leandro police release body-cam video in burglary suspect's shooting by officer

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Published  February 22, 2022 6:14pm PST
Crime and Public Safety
KTVU FOX 2

Police body cam footage released in non-fatal shooting of suspect linked to break in

Police in San Leandro released body-worn camera footage of a non-fatal shooting. The male suspect is accused of breaking into a marijuana dispensary. Police say he reached for a gun when he was shot.

SAN LEANDRO, Calif. - San Leandro police say body-camera video shows a suspect in a marijuana dispensary burglary grabbing a gun while trying to get into a car, leading an officer to shoot and wound him.

But the parents of William Julian Young say their son was needlessly shot.  

Police say the body-cam footage shows Young running to an Infiniti parked outside and getting in through the passenger door - just as the officer opens the driver's door.

Police say Young reaches for a gun on the driver's seat. That's when Officer Caleb Schwitters opens fire, wounding Young.

"Don't move, bro, don't move. Stay on the ground," the officer tells him. "Don't reach! Keep your hands down."

"Why you shoot me bruh?" Young asks the officer.

The shooting happened outside the Silverstreak marijuana dispensary on Fairway Drive on Jan. 2.

Police released the same video in slow motion, saying Young picked up a semi-automatic pistol with an extended magazine from the front seat and raised it at the officer. 

The officer pushes the driver's door and fires numerous shots through the window.

Afterward, Young is conscious - and worried 

"I cannot breathe. I do not want to die," Young says.

Soon he asks, "Where's the ambulance, sir?"

"They're coming. They're on their way," an officer responds.

At one point, Young says, "You shot me for no reason."

Young is still in custody at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin. His bail set at $270,000.

"He may still be here but he has a long road ahead of him as far as his recovery,' his mother Jeaneane Young told KTVU. 

Asked why her son had broken into a dispensary and had a gun as alleged by police, she said, "We’re not all perfect. My son made a mistake. But just because he made a mistake, I feel like he shouldn’t have been shot."

William Young said, "My son did grab a gun, never pointed it at the police officer, and then he shut the door, backed up two feet and in my perspective, I'm taking it as ‘I got a black man with a gun, I have the right to kill him now.' "

The Alameda County DA's office has charged William Julian Young with burglary, assault and weapons violations. He's pleaded not guilty, and the case is pending.