Police officers who killed Pacifica woman cleared of wrongdoing

(KRON) — Two Pacifica Police Department officers who killed an armed woman were cleared of wrongdoing by the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office on Friday.

Michelle Arrais, 50, was fatally shot by officers March 27 on Francisco Boulevard near her home. Police were called to the area by Arrais’ son who reported that his mother shot him. The mother was trying to flee from the scene by driving away when officers confronted her, the DA’s office said. Arrais allegedly pointed a gun at both officers before she was killed.

After an investigation, “District Attorney Stephen M. Wagstaffe has concluded that there is no legal basis for filing criminal charges against either of the two Pacifica Police Officers involved in the death of Ms. Arrais. The use of lethal force by Corporal Hayden Fry and Officer Kevin Contreras was legally justifiable self-defense and defense of others,” the DA’s office wrote.

The domestic violence incident began on the night of March 26, when Arrais arrived home with a new gun. Her son told investigators that he believed Arrais suffered from undiagnosed schizophrenia. “He told his mother he did not want to live in the apartment if she had a gun, but Michelle refused him, stating she got the gun for protection purposes,” the DA’s report states.

On the morning of March 27, the son heard gunshots inside the family’s apartment. His mother opened his bedroom door, pointed a gun at him, and shot him in the arm, the report states. Arrais never said a word during the shooting.

The son locked his bedroom door and called 911, the report states. “When officers responded, the only reasonable assumption was that there was an armed and dangerous suspect in the proximity of the apartment complex,” Wagstaffe wrote.

Arrais pointed her gun at the officers as she attempted to drive away, the report states. After seeing the gun, Corporal Hayden Fry and Officer Kevin Contreras opened fire, lethally shooting the mother.

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