San Jose K-9 failed 22 times to respond to commands before latching onto man's throat: court

SAN JOSE, Calif. - A federal judge has paved the way for a trial to proceed against the city of San Jose after a police dog bit a man's neck for a minute after he was suspected of shoplifting at a Safeway and then hid in a trash can to avoid police.  

In issuing that 31-page ruling in Anthony Paredes' excessive force suit against the city of San Jose, some other revelations were discovered.

Namely, that Tex, the dog who bit Parades, had failed to respond to 22 verbal commands by his police handler in the past, despite Officer Michael Jeffrey swearing in his court declaration that Tex had "never failed to release a bite in the field." 

"This evidence would support an inference that Jeffrey knew that Tex could or would fail to release [him] when commanded, and that his efforts to release Tex were therefore not taken in good
faith," U.S. District Court Judge P. Casey Pitts wrote in his Dec. 18 ruling.

The judge based his decision on six body camera videos provided by Paredes' legal team to show the dog's failure to obey. 

The officers lied," Paredes' lawyer, Izaak Schwaiger, told KTVU. "And the city knew this. This just shows there is not just one bad apple. All of SJPD brass knew about this and thinks it's OK."

Also, Pitts ruled that a jury can consider that the use of Tex could be considered "deadly force," because of a myriad of factors: The dog was known not to release on command, its average bite hold was 60 seconds compared to the industry standard of 10 seconds, the police knew that Paredes was contained in a trash can and would emerge with his head out – something the dog would immediately latch onto, and that Jeffrey tried to yank Tex off with the dog's teeth still in Paredes' neck. 

"There has never been a case in the 9th circuit or anywhere else that has made a ruling so definitive as to a K-9 being deadly force," Schwaiger said.

WARNING GRAPHIC VIDEO: K-9 bites Anthony Paredes' neck for one minute

The only other similar case law, also in a K-9 case involving San Jose police,  was ruled on this year by U.S. District Judge Edward Davila regarding what happened to David Tovar on Jan. 21, 2021.

A San Jose K-9 bit Tovar for 2 minutes and 40 seconds, which the judge ruled was excessive, adding that a jury could also possibly conclude it may be considered deadly.

Tovar died that day of police gunshot wounds, but his body was covered in dog-bite lacerations. 

San Jose City Attorney Nora Frimann would not comment specifically on what happened to Paredes on Feb. 7, 2020, citing pending litigation. 

But in an email to KTVU, Frimann added "it is important to understand that in ruling on this motion the court’s order makes factual inferences in favor of Mr. Paredes that are not binding on a jury."

KTVU featured Paredes' story in July 2022, also revealing that over a five-year period from 2018 to 2022, San Jose police deployed K-9s more than any other law enforcement agency in the Bay Area, resulting in 167 bites. 

Anthony Paredes' windpipe was crushed by a SJPD K-9 in 2020. 

Four years ago, Parades was suspected of helping his girlfriend steal $350 of tequila from the Safeway on Berryessa Road, and he was hiding in a trash bin when police deployed their German shepherd, Tex, to apprehend him.

Body-worn camera footage obtained by KTVU shows the fateful encounter in graphic detail, blood covering Paredes’ face as the dog thrashed its head side-to-side.

Tex sunk his teeth into Paredes' throat and held on for a full minute, shredding his windpipe and fracturing thyroid cartilage.

The officers stated in their sworn declarations that they believed Paredes might have been armed with a "bladed weapon." 

But the judge noted in court documents that both the 911 and dispatch transcript both confirmed that the officers were told Paredes was unarmed. 

"Drawing all factual inferences in Paredes’ favor, a jury could conclude that at the time Jeffrey deployed Tex, a reasonable officer in his position would have understood Paredes to be unarmed, of minimal threat, and attempting to surrender," Pitts wrote. "Existing case law clearly established at the time of the bite that the initial deployment of a canine in such circumstances violates the Fourth Amendment."

In October 2023, Jeffrey admitted in a deposition that he had been kicked off the K-9 unit after violating the department's use of force policy. 

And he also acknowledged, according to the filing, that the K-9 unit and the Internal Affairs units found the bite fell within policy, but "ultimately that determination was overridden by the chain of command." 

For his part, Paredes has been struggling to find meaningful work as he has a criminal background, including being arrested several times over the years for drug-related offenses.

He's been volunteering at a local shelter in the meantime, Schwaiger said. 

In the Safeway case, Paredes pleaded guilty to one count of being an accessory and possession of brass knuckles. He was sentenced to two years in state prison.

Since the attack, Paredes has not been able to sing at his church, as his windpipe and thyroid were permanently damaged. 

The trial is currently scheduled for Feb. 4.