[http://www.timesheraldonline.com/ci_17112408?source=most_viewed]
Every day at 5 a.m. Guy Jarreau, 34, called his mother in New Orleans to share a Bible verse with her and then say, "Isn't it just wonderful to be alive?" she recalled.
"That's how we started off the day for each other," Andrea Jarreau-Griffin said of her late son who died in a controversial Vallejo police-officer related shooting Dec. 11.
A month after the shooting, his mother joined friends and family members at a vigil for Jarreau in the downtown Vallejo alley where he was mortally wounded. He died on his way to John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek.
Vallejo police, meanwhile, are continuing their investigation into what they have described as a case of self-defense after Jarreau pointed a loaded pearl-handled pistol at an officer. The officer fired twice, hitting Jarreau once in the chest.
"The suspect had a loaded weapon and he confronted the officer with it and the officer was protecting himself and other members of the public that could have been hurt," police Sgt. Jeff Bassett said.
Police had responded to a 911 call about a man brandishing a gun near some teenagers on the street.
Jarreau's friends, however, say that just be-fore the incident, Jarreau was on the street filming an anti-crime video called "I'm Sick of Living Like This."
Close friend James Holliday said questions remain over a brief video clip police released of the incident showing a man identified as Jarreau with a gun. Police have said the indoor footage was likely taken shortly before the shooting.
"We don't know if he had a gun during the video," Holliday said.
Bassett said he's not sure what happened to the video Jarreau was making, but added "I'm sure it's in evidence."
Bassett said the officer who shot Jarreau was released for full duty a few days after the incident, and after a mandatory investigation and counseling.
The case, Bassett said, has not yet been submitted to the District Attorney's Office, which will review the evidence and decide if the police officer should be charged.
Police, Bassett said, are still waiting on a coroner's report and ballistics evidence before they can submit the report. A sergeant with the Contra Costa Coroner's Office said the reports are done but they must be typed up and undergo official review.
Jarreau's body went to the Contra Costa Coroner's Office because he died at John Muir Medical Center.
The case has attracted the attention of noted Oakland attorney John Burris, who told the Times-Herald his firm is considering representing Jarreau's family.
Burris, who grew up in Vallejo, recently returned to inspect the shooting site.
"We are still completing our investigation the best as we can," Burris said. "We are very close to making a decision. We are still waiting for the coroner's office report."
Burris said Jarreau's "good character" compelled him to look into the case.
"This is a young man who seems to have his life together. How's (it) a young person like that got shot?" he asked.
Attorney Ephraim Walker, an associate in Burris' firm, said a central question is whether Jarreau was actually pointing a gun at the officer.
"That's the big elephant in the room," Walker said. "The big question is what happened in that alley."
What's been happening in the alley since the shooting is that Jarreau's mother, other family members and friends have begun a series of monthly vigils to remember him.
His mother said, in an extensive interview, that her son was a religious, nonviolent man who devoted himself to helping children, poor people and the homeless.
"Vallejo lost a special individual. They lost a true man of God. He was God's, first. Then, he was my son," she said. "I will not rest until I get justice for the wrongful death of my son."
Jarreau-Griffin said it grieves her that flowers, cards, T-shirts and other items left in memory of Jarreau in the alley are regularly swept up and taken away. She added that she hopes someone who saw what happened in the alley steps forward.
A native of New Orleans who grew up in the city, Jarreau had a few run-ins with the law, but has no "violent criminal history," Walker said. Arrests were for public intoxication, public urination and cashing an unendorsed check, Jarreau-Griffin said.
Despite initial reports that said Jarreau came to Vallejo after Hurricane Katrina, his mother said he had lived in the city for 81/2 years and sent her money in the aftermath of the devastating storm. She said he held two jobs and was about to go on a speaking engagement tour with Street Soldiers, a branch of the Omega Boys and Girls Club which promotes non-violence. He also passed out turkeys and other items during the holidays in Vallejo, Richmond and elsewhere, she said.
Jarreau worked with the child care development center on the Napa Valley College campus where he was attending school. He regularly attended North Hills Baptist Church on Admiral Callaghan Lane where he helped with a children's basketball program.
"He was gentle and quiet," church administrative secretary Paula Prentice said, adding that many church members attended the first vigil for Jarreau shortly after his death. She said he didn't have a car and church members often gave him a ride so he could attend services.
"He was making changes in his life. The hardest thing is not knowing what happened," Prentice added.
Jarreau's mother said her son was grieving for his baby who was born and died on the same day in March in San Francisco, and that he was planning to fly to New Orleans on Dec. 16, to surprise his mother and propose to his high school sweetheart.
Jarreau-Griffin said she last spoke to her son the day before he died. Shortly before they hung up he said "Mama, you're my best girl," she recalled.
After several attempts to retrieve her son's possessions, she said police Thursday gave her a gold crucifix he was wearing, covered in his blood, and one of his diamond earrings. The other one is missing, she added.
Of her grief, she said "I feel so empty inside. It's like somebody pushed me down a well and I'm saying 'Where's the bottom to my well?'
"It's so dark. I keep looking for some kind of light."
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Andrea Jarreau-Griffin cries as she talks about her son Guy, in the photo to the left, who died in a controversial Vallejo police-officer related shooting Dec. 11. (Chris Riley/Times-Herald) Comments found at the Vallejo Times-Herald newspaper website:
Francine Simon-HenryJan 17 The video that was shot at his vigil tells the whole story. In that video, a witness came forward clearly stating that Guy Jarreau was holding a blue cup of water in his hand.
The witness stated that the cup of water hit the ground after he was executed by the police officer and the water and cup were clearly seen on the ground next to his body as the police kicked his body twice as he lay there screaming for help. This is clear as day. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to understand this. The witness stated on video that the officer was talking very negatively toward the other members of the group.
That these young men were handcuffed and sat on the sidewalk and that two other younger children were pushed toward a glass window, shattering it to pieces. Why did Guy Jarreau carry a gun that day?
If you were walking in that part of town, with expensive equipment as they had, would you take extra percaution? Is it a sin for a person to protect themselves and other members of the group?
Didn't the singer in the group clearly state that Guy Jarreau acted as their security?
Didn't you hear the other witness state that there was a shooting at that same tatoo shop one week before?
Whatever Guy Jarreau did earlier in the day prior to the murder, is really irrelevant. The only factor here is what happened in the alley.
It is clear that the 911 tape said the Tatoo shop owner stated that the man who had a gun wore a plaid shirt and the gun was CHROME with a black handle. Guy Jarreau wore a white striped shirt. The gun shown in the video that he had prior to the murder was still blue with a WHITE handle. What is so difficult to understand about this? A second grader can draw these conclusions. If you had an ounce of common sense, you can see that this is a COVER UP by the police.
There are far too many discrepancies and controversial statements. And the fact that the officer is right now working as if nothing happened, is an insult to us all.
A INJURY TO ONE, IS AN INJURY TO ALL!!!!
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