The coroner said that two bullets were recovered, and ruled the shooting a homicide.
The incident began when police responded to a report of a “suspicious vehicle.” The Denver Police Department released a statement, saying that officers were responding to a call that the vehicle was stolen.
Hernandez was driving the car, which also had four other teens inside. Both police officers shot Hernandez multiple times as she tried to flee. Police say that she drove the car into them, but their injuries are inconsistent with head-on vehicular impact. Some witnesses have said that the car only hit one officer after he shot the driver.
Now, attorneys for Jessica Hernandez’s family say that the autopsy proves that she was shot from the driver’s side. This stands in direct contradiction of police statements that said she was driving towards officers when they fired. This indicates that they fired at her as she passed them.
In other words, it proves that Jessica was murdered for fleeing, not for driving into officers.
“The report shows that Jessie was shot from the driver’s side of the car and not from close range,” Qusair Mohamedbhai, the family’s attorney said in a statement. “These facts undermine the Denver Police Department’s claim that Jessie was driving at the officers as they shot her.”
One of the passengers, Trina Diaz, 16, previously stated that officers were standing next to the car when they opened fire, rather than in front of it.
The Denver Police Department have refused to comment on the autopsy’s findings and the fact that it proves these officers lied and filed a false police report.
“Jessie was clinging to her life after being suffering four gunshot wounds,” Mohamedbhai added. “She was then dragged out of the car, dropped onto the ground, and handcuffed. The abrasions to her face confirm this inhumane treatment.”
Mohamedbhai renewed the family’s call for an independent federal investigation into Jessica’s death.
“The family has no confidence that the Denver Police Department or District Attorney will conduct any sort of fair or meaningful investigation,” Mohamedbhai concluded.
Read the report below for yourself…