The California Attorney General’s Office today announced that it has filed one count of voluntary manslaughter and two counts of assault with a firearm against former LAPD officer Salvador Sanchez in a 2019 shooting inside a Corona Costco.
Sanchez was off-duty when he fatally shot 32-year-old Kenneth French following a confrontation at a Corona Costco on June 14, 2019.
On Sept. 25, 2019, District Attorney Mike Hestrin announced that a Riverside County criminal grand jury returned a “no bill” in the matter of Sanchez. A “no bill” means the grand jury did not find that the evidence in the matter rose to the level of probable cause that a crime occurred, which is required for criminal prosecution.
The California State Bar requires that prosecutors not institute or continue to prosecute a charge that the prosecutor knows is not supported by probable cause. Thus, the case was concluded.
Following this determination by the grand jury, the California Attorney General’s Office conducted an independent review of the case. As a result of that review, the Attorney General’s Office has filed one count of voluntary manslaughter and two counts of assault with a firearm against Sanchez.
The Riverside County District Attorney’s Office said it will continue to work with the Attorney General’s Office to assist in this prosecution. The District Attorney’s Bureau of Investigation assisted in obtaining an arrest warrant prior to the filing of the current charges by the Attorney General.
