The family of a man killed by a Shasta County Sheriff’s Sergeant in 2020 is still trying to sue the county. 41-year-old Thomas Barbosa, a Marine Corps veteran with PTSD who had a history of mental health related incidents, had been chased by deputies to a cliff off Platina Road, where Barbosa drove his pickup over the side and it came to rest on its side. With several deputies surrounding him, Barbosa was climbing out the back window when he was shot dead by Sergeant Jose Gonzalez from his vantage point up the cliff. Gonzalez had contended that Barbosa was holding a knife and posed a threat to nearby deputies. Two minutes later a K9 was released and he thrashed the Barbosa’s arm before deputies pulled the dead man out onto the ground, handcuffed him, and dragged his lifeless body away from the truck. Based on the knowledge Gonzalez had about Barbosa’s past, the shooting was ruled to be justified. The Board of Supervisors will discuss the case in closed session Tuesday.
Supervisors will also review the case of Everett Jewett, who has been trying to sue the county over his treatment in Shasta County Jail, alleging that staff had not considered his back injury, causing him to fall down some stairs and further injure himself. He filed suit in 2013, leading to a class action suit that the county settled in 2017 to improve conditions for disabled inmates.