CYPRESS – The father of a man killed in a bloody confrontation with police says officers have stared him down on the street ever since he began a public campaign for answers and consequences in his son’s death.
Ron Thomas met with the police chief in Cypress on Tuesday afternoon, after he accused police there of harassment during a televised news conference. Chief Jackie Gomez-Whiteley said that she had been “surprised” to hear Thomas’ allegations and invited him to meet with her.
After the meeting, she said he “basically made no allegations against any specific officers.” She said she gave Thomas her card and asked him to contact her if he has any other concerns. “We’re sensitive,” she said. “Our officers are professional.”
Thomas has worked to keep the public’s eye on the beating death of his son Kelly. The District Attorney’s Office charged one Fullerton police officer with murder and another with involuntary manslaughter last week in connection with Kelly Thomas’ death.
Thomas said police in Cypress, his hometown, have stared him down four times since he began calling for the death penalty for any officers involved in his son’s death. He said the stare-downs would happen when he stopped at a stoplight across the street from an officer: “That solid, nonstop eye contact, almost trying to be in an intimidating manner.”
He said he had also been told that friends in the department could no longer speak with him. “I love the department, I love the city,” he said. “I don’t want it to escalate. There hasn’t been anything really egregious.”
Gomez-Whiteley said she had her staff contact Thomas as soon as she heard his allegations to arrange Tuesday’s meeting. She said Thomas described officers staring at him from patrol cars across the street but did not identify them or say that they had followed him or pulled him over.
She said she would follow up with her staff about his allegations but said it would be “pretty strong” to describe that as an internal investigation.
Contact the writer: 714-704-3777 or dirving@ocregister.com
