David Ordaz Jr. Video

David Ordaz Jr., 34, was shot and killed by Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputies on March 14, 2021, outside his family’s home in East Los Angeles. Ordaz was experiencing a mental health crisis and was armed with a kitchen knife when his sister called 911 seeking help. Deputies arrived before a requested Mental Evaluation Team and shot Ordaz approximately 12 times as his family watched from feet away.

Deputy Remin Pineda was charged with two felony counts of assault after body camera footage showed he continued firing after Ordaz had fallen to the ground and other deputies had stopped shooting. In November 2024, Pineda pleaded no contest and was sentenced to two years probation with no jail time, a decision that drew outrage from Ordaz’s family.

Background

David Ordaz Jr. grew up in East Los Angeles, one of five siblings. He worked in construction and had three children with his partner, Jazmine Moreno. He lived on the same East Los Angeles property as his father, David Ordaz Sr. Family members said Ordaz had previously experienced mental health crises in 2006 and 2007, during which deputies successfully de-escalated the situations peacefully.

The Incident

On March 14, 2021, Ordaz’s sister Hilda Pedroza called 911 to report that her brother was suicidal and had a knife. In the call, she told the dispatcher: “I’m currently with someone who is telling me they’re suicidal. I was just wondering if you could guide me on what I can do to help them.” She confirmed he had what she described as a “regular kitchen knife” and indicated he had a history of drug use and had been having suicidal thoughts “for a while.”

Deputies from the East Los Angeles Sheriff’s Station responded to the home in the 100 block of North Rowan Avenue at approximately 1:50 p.m. They requested less-lethal weapons and a Mental Evaluation Team. When they arrived, they found Ordaz seated in a car outside his home with his sister.

Deputies ordered Ordaz to exit the vehicle. He complied and exited holding the knife at his side. Deputies held him at gunpoint and repeatedly ordered him to drop the knife. According to body camera footage, Ordaz refused to drop the weapon and told deputies to shoot him.

After Ordaz stepped toward the deputies, two deputies fired bean bag rounds at him. He stumbled backward, turned, and ran up the sidewalk. Deputies then opened fire with their service weapons, striking Ordaz multiple times. As he fell to the ground, deputies continued shooting.

According to the family’s federal lawsuit, which cites the coroner’s report, all but two of the bullets that struck Ordaz hit him in the back and side. Body camera footage shows that after the initial flurry of gunfire stopped and Ordaz was lying face-up on the sidewalk, Deputy Pineda fired an additional shot. The lawsuit alleges this final bullet struck Ordaz in the chest.

The shooting occurred in full view of Ordaz’s parents, two brothers, and two sisters, who stood in the driveway just feet away. The Mental Evaluation Team that deputies had requested never arrived before the shooting.

Aftermath

Sheriff Alex Villanueva released body camera footage of the shooting on July 31, 2021, the day after the family filed a federal lawsuit. In a statement, Villanueva said: “I want to clearly state I have grave concerns regarding this deputy involved shooting.” He announced that Deputy Pineda had been relieved of duty and had his peace officer powers suspended pending the investigation.

State law requires law enforcement agencies to release video of officer shootings within 45 days unless they demonstrate it would substantially interfere with an investigation. Villanueva did not meet that deadline in the Ordaz case.

Ordaz’s sister Hilda Pedroza described watching her brother’s final moments: “[Ordaz’s] head was still up, he was still alive,” she said, referring to the moment after the initial shots. After the final shot, “we knew he was dead.” The family’s attorney, Federico Sayre, characterized the last shot as “murder.”

Criminal Charges

On November 10, 2022, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón announced charges against Deputy Remin Pineda, then 38 years old. Pineda was charged with one felony count of assault with a semi-automatic firearm and one felony count of assault under color of authority.

In a statement, Gascón said: “Unlawful and excessive force at the hands of police erodes the public trust. It is imperative that we hold law enforcement accountable when they act unlawfully.” He noted this was his fourth charging decision against law enforcement in shooting cases, compared to only two such charges in the nearly two decades prior to his tenure.

Plea Deal and Sentencing

In November 2024, Pineda, then 40, pleaded no contest to both felony counts. Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Mark Arnold said he “agonized over whether it was the right thing to do” but believed the plea agreement “does comport with justice.”

Pineda was sentenced to two years probation and ordered to:

• Complete 250 hours of community service
• Undergo one year of psychological counseling
• Surrender his peace officer certification, permanently barring him from law enforcement work
• Write an apology letter to the Ordaz family

The judge suspended a 180-day jail sentence that Pineda would face if he violates probation.

Ordaz’s family members protested the plea deal in court. Sister Hilda Pedroza said: “I speak for my entire family that we do not agree with it. We are furious, saddened and disappointed the DA’s office is willing to take that. This trauma is going to affect us for generations.”

David Ordaz Sr., speaking through a Spanish interpreter, said he did not think the plea deal was fair. Jazmine Moreno, Ordaz’s partner and mother of his three children, said: “He has to pay because he didn’t just take David’s life—all of us are affected. My kids will never be the same.”

Civil Lawsuit

The family filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against Los Angeles County in July 2021, alleging that four deputies used unjustified lethal force. The lawsuit contends that Ordaz posed no threat when he was shot in the back while on the ground. The case remained pending as of the criminal sentencing.

Pedroza, who made the 911 call that day, has said that if she could do it over, she would never have called the authorities. “I never thought that call would result in my brother’s death.”