Family of man killed by deputies files civil lawsuit against Sacramento County, several deputies

(FOX40.COM) — The family of a man who died after being shot by deputies with the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office filed a wrongful death civil lawsuit on Tuesday against several unnamed deputies and the county.

The family of Christopher Gilmore says they called 911 on the morning of March 23 because he was experiencing a mental health crisis and had injured himself.

The civil rights lawsuit alleges negligence and wrongful death, arguing that Gilmore was in crisis and did no harm to anyone but himself when he was fatally shot.

Dan Del Rio, an attorney representing the Gilmore family, said, “This is a big stretch of the imagination to go and say this is instead an attack on that officer, more than it is something to get away from something that is harming him.”

The sheriff’s office spokesperson said on Tuesday that the agency does not comment on pending litigation.

Videos released earlier in the year by the family and the sheriff’s office show Gilmore exiting the garage of his Rio Linda home. Deputies command him to drop a knife and he continues walking forward, but he remains several feet away from deputies.

At the time, his sister Bobbie told deputies over the phone that her brother was schizophrenic and thought “…everyone is out to hurt him.”

After six less-than-lethal rounds were fired, deputies fired three gunshots.

Bobbie Gilmore said that she saw her brother collapse. “It just replays over and over in my head and I can’t get it out of my head no matter what I do.”

“My brother was not trying to hurt anybody that day. He really wasn’t. He was only hurting himself and he needed help,” she continued.

The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office has a mental health crisis team that responds to situations like the one in March, but the sheriff’s office has said that the team was not on duty that day.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX40.