Mary Cummins Investigative Reporter Los Angeles, California: Bakersfield police shoot and kill unarmed 73 year old Francisco Serna who had dementia

Tuesday, December 13, 2016

Bakersfield police shoot and kill unarmed 73 year old Francisco Serna who had dementia

Francisco Serna, Roy Serna, Rubia Serna, Laura Serna, Bakersfield, California police shoot kill 73 year old man unarmed with dementia, kern county

Breaking story. Check back for updates.

UPDATE: 12/18/16 Services. Services for Francisco "Frank" Serna will be
Thursday, 4pm- 8pm for public viewing, Rosario at 6pm at Peter's Funeral Homes, 1401 7th Street in Wasco. Friday 10am mass at St John's Catholic Church, followed by graveside service at Wasco Memorial Park.

12/17/16 Request for a grand jury investigation was made.

12/16/16 A gofundme was set up by Roy for Francisco's wife Rubia.

https://www.gofundme.com/memorial-funds-for-francisco-serna

The Officer fired seven bullets at Francisco. Five hit Francisco. This is per the coroner today.

12/14/2016 There is now a Facebook page set up for Francisco.

https://www.facebook.com/justiceforfranciscoserna/?pnref=story

What happened after the murder was even worse! Police must withhold the name of the victim if the victim dies until after they tell the family the victim died.

"It is difficult to accept that our dad's life ended so brutally, abruptly and with such excessive violence. We feel our dad was stolen from us at a time when our family should be celebrating the holidays, birthdays and making happy family memories," Imperial read.

"Instead, our dad was murdered by BPD...

"Our dad was treated like a criminal, and we feel he was left to die alone, without his family by his side. Our family was questioned and restricted from comforting our mother for about 14 hours, while BPD completed their investigation.

"Family who asked to see their mother were told by BPD that if they crossed the police line they would be arrested."

According to family members, details were withheld from the family by investigators. They said they learned, not from the police, but from social media and the morning news that their father had died.

The family is asking for a civil rights investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice. They also called upon the state attorney general to launch an independent investigation."
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26 year old rookie shot Francisco.

http://heavy.com/news/2016/12/reagan-selman-bakersfield-police-officer-cop-shot-francisco-serna-photos-pictures-facebook-marines/

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It appears Francisco was carrying a crucifix. He thought he may be near death (how prophetic) so he carried a crucifix with him. I come from a Mexican family. Religion is very important. My Nana had a couple of these religious beliefs about keeping a rosary on her so I can understand him carrying a crucifix when in fear or doubt. That might have been mistaken as a gun.

He was shot as he continued to come toward the officer when the officer told him to stop. He was confused with dementia. Sometimes when they get dementia they revert back to their first language which for Francisco was Spanish. The officer allegedly shot him nine times. Police said they shot him seven times. I went through the police academy. We are told to shoot if they do not obey an important command. Still, they could have shot him once to drop him. The officer must have been frightened and over reacted unloading his gun into the 73 year old man killing him. Such a horrible shame. I hope the family sues the police. They need better training when it comes to disabled people, people with dementia, mentally challenged people...

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Bakersfield police shot and killed 73 year old Francisco Serna who had dementia in a case of mistaken identity. Serna was killed across the street from his home at 7913 Silver Birch Avenue, Bakersfield, California.

Serna had been taking late night walks when he couldn't sleep. He was walking late at night when a neighbor reported a man with a gun. Police arrived and told Serna to take his hands out of his pockets and don't move. Instead Serna walked toward them confused. Police shot him as he did not obey their commands.

Here is video from his son Roy talking about the shooting.

https://www.facebook.com/roy.djmrgroove/videos/10207919012748837/

A few posts from the son.

Francisco Serna, Roy Serna, Rubia Serna, Laura Serna, Bakersfield, California police shoot kill 73 year old man unarmed with dementia, kern county

Kern County, California has one of the highest rates of police shooting and killing people. It probably doesn't help that he was brown.

Francisco y Rubia Serna bought their home on Silver Birch through a HUD foreclosure in 2010 for $145,000. It's four beds, three baths, 2,410 sf on a 6,000 sf lot built in 1988.

Francisco and Rubia's children were born in Texas.

Serna worked at a cotton gin in McFarland in central California until retiring a dozen years ago. he's lived in Wasco, Bakersfield, Coalinga, Shafter and Indio, California and Brownsville, Texas. He is survived by his wife of 51 years Rubia Rosaura Gonzales Serna 70, five children Laura 47, Francisco "Frank" 45, Rogelio "Roy," Jesus, Rubia 50, grandchildren and great grandchildren.

Obituary below.

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=173868014

Someone made a findagrave for the wife who is alive. This happens when people pre-enscribe tombstones. People think they are dead when they are not. They just removed it. Here's a photo of it. Francisco will most likely be buried in Wasco Memorial Park, Wasco, Kern County, California.

Rubia Gonzalez Serna january 11 1946 Mexico grave, wife of Francisco Serna

This looks like just the mother's side of a grave. The husband would go to the left.

Rubia Gonzalez Serna january 11 1946 Mexico grave, wife of Francisco Serna

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=33804437&ref=acom

Articles about the shooting.

http://www.bakersfield.com/news/vigil-held-for--year-old-shot-by-police/article_f01bbdfc-c199-11e6-915d-b35350ba8de4.html

Mary Cummins of Animal Advocates is a wildlife rehabilitator licensed by the California Department of Fish and Game. Mary Cummins is also a licensed real estate appraiser in Los Angeles, California.

Mary Cummins, Mary K. Cummins, Mary Katherine Cummins, Mary Cummins-Cobb, Mary, Cummins, Cobb, real estate, appraiser, appraisal, instructor, teacher, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Pasadena, Brentwood, Bel Air, California, licensed, permitted, single family, condo, pud, hud, fannie mae, freddie mac, uspap, certified, residential, certified resident, apartment building, multi-family, commercial, industrial, expert witness, civil, criminal, orea, dre, insurance, bonded, experienced, bilingual, spanish, english, form, 1004, 2055, land, raw, acreage, vacant, insurance, cost, income approach, market analysis, comparative, theory, appraisal theory, cost approach, sales, matched pairs, plot, plat, map, diagram, photo, photographs, photography, rear, front, street, subject, comparable, sold, listed, active, pending, expired, cancelled, listing, mls, multiple listing service, claw, themls,

1 comment:

UnknownAugust 15, 2017 at 12:19 AM
This is awful and should have never happened, but it didnt surprise me. Bakersfield Police Dept has been under investigation more than once for questionable practices. The BPD is well known for their excessive violence and trigger happy behavior. Add a little bit of 'good ole boy' redneck racism and its tragedy in the making. One must wonder though, just how scary and threatening could a confused 73 year old unarmed man be to a trained professional officer with back up?
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Tuesday, December 13, 2016

Bakersfield police shoot and kill unarmed 73 year old Francisco Serna who had dementia

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