[420 Girl]

A Fresno man who was fatally shot by Napa County drug agents during a marijuana raid near Lake Berryessa had drawn his own gun but never fired, authorities said.

Jose Luis Martinez Chavez, 38, refused to comply with shouted orders from law enforcement before being shot, authorities.

Chavez was one of two men encountered by members of a state-led, multi-agency task force who had hiked into a pair of rural grows Wednesday, the Napa County Sheriff’s Office said.

The other man, Fresno resident Oswaldo Rivera, 21, was later arrested for suspected cultivation of marijuana and violation of parole.

Four members of the team entered the garden where they confronted Chavez and Rivera, authorities said.

Rivera, who was unarmed and ran away, was was apprehended after a short pursuit, sheriff’s Capt. Tracey Stuart said.

But Chavez drew his handgun and refused repeated commands to comply with law enforcement, Stuart said.

Two agents fired their weapons, one a Napa police officer and the other a sheriff’s deputy, killing Chavez, authorities said.

Both are on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation into the shooting.

They were identified as Officer Pete Piersig, a five-year member of the Napa Police force who joined the Special Investigations Bureau in 2007, and sheriff’s Deputy Jeremiah Bohlander, a 5 1/2-year member of the Napa County Sheriff’s Office.

Bohlander was assigned to the special unit in January. Piersig previously was a City of Pinole policeman for 5 1/2 years, the sheriff’s office said.

Overseen by a supervisor from the state Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement, the eight-member Napa Special Investigations Bureau includes sheriff’s deputies, Napa Police officers and a county probation officer.

Stuart said the case remained under investigation.


NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: PressDemocrat.com
Author: MARY CALLAHAN
Contact: PressDemocrat.com
Copyright: 2010 PressDemocrat.com
Website: Details emerge in deadly Napa County marijuana garden raid


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