rip,
Friends ask why police fatally shot area rapper
By Lisa Fernandez, MEDIANEWS STAFF
Article Created: 04/09/2008 03:31:20 AM PDT
Aziz Howard Raqmond James was considered a rising star in Bay Area hip hop. A talented 24-year-old Santa Cruz rapper, he performed throughout California. But James — known to audiences as "Almighty Aziz" — became suddenly violent at a party last weekend following a performance by his group, according to relatives and friends. He stabbed two friends and a police dog, then was fatally shot by Santa Clara police officers.
It should have ended differently, those close to him said Tuesday. They question whether police did everything they could to defuse the situation before using deadly force. They wonder why officers couldn't have negotiated with James or used a stun gun on him.
"Aziz was trippin'," said longtime friend and fellow rapper Eric Munoz, 24, of Watsonville, who goes by the name Ghambit. "I was like, 'Dog, what's happening, bro? What's wrong?' And we tried to warn the cops: Don't send in the dogs. But that's what they did. It just got out of control."
James' brother, Howard James III of Santa Cruz, can't believe his younger brother — his sidekick — is gone.
"We went everywhere together," he said Tuesday. "My parents are devastated. He was their baby. I just don't think police did everything they could have. Why didn't they even try to talk to him, at least over a phone? He wanted their help."
Police won't say much about the deadly predawn scene — the first officer-involved fatal shooting in Santa Clara since 2005. Officer Scott Fitzgerald, a 16-year veteran of the force, and Officer Troy Johnsen, an eight-year veteran, were placed on routine administrative leave following the shooting. As is standard, the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office is investigating.
"It would be inappropriate to discuss the tactics used, since this is still being investigated," Lt. Mike Sellers said. "But you need to look at the totality of the situation. Here's a person who stabs a person at a party, jumps through a glass-plate window, runs to a neighbor's house, jumps through their window and then stabs another friend who tried to calm him down. He may be a nice guy, but my concern is what the officers were faced with."
Officers resort to deadly force, Sellers said, when someone is believed to "cause imminent harm to himself or another human being.
"I appreciate all the questions people are asking. It's an unfortunate thing," he said.
Aziz James, a graphic artist, grew up in Watsonville and Aptos. He and his group, the Warlordz, had wrapped up a gig at Avalon Night Club in Santa Clara and were partying with about a dozen people at a house on Crystal Drive early Saturday morning. Around 3 a.m., James called his older brother.
"He was jokin' around. He seemed to be fine then," Howard James III, a drug rehabilitation counselor, told MediaNews.
But friends say he began acting paranoid and then, Munoz said, he went berserk.
James stabbed a friend and jumped through a window, running out of the party. Munoz said people were drinking beer at the party, and perhaps smoking a little pot. But he never knew James to take hard drugs — in fact, he preached against hard drugs. Munoz can't understand what happened.
"He was frightened," Munoz said.
James ran two houses down and entered another by breaking a window, police said. He also ended up stabbing another friend who came to calm him down. Friends won't identify the stabbing victims, but said they are both out of the hospital.
James had no known criminal record in California. His brother said he has no known history of mental illness. Friends theorize someone may have spiked James' drink or marijuana with something stronger.
Friends and family say they will lodge a formal protest and complaint against Santa Clara police for their handling of the situation.
When Howard James arrived at the scene about 5 a.m. — his brother had called him at 3:52 a.m. saying there were "people out to kill him" — he tried asking police to go inside and talk his brother down.
The answer was no.
Finally, at 6 a.m., Howard James saw two police dogs go inside the home.
"I heard them breaking down the door," he said. "I heard dogs barking. Then I hear the gunshots. Six fast ones, then two more. Like firecrackers."
A police radio barked out: Shots fired, shots fired. Paramedics, then fire crews, arrived — and left. But no one came out on a stretcher.
"I knew he was dead," his brother said. "A Sunnyvale cop said, 'I'm sorry for your loss.'"
Funeral arrangements are pending.
By Lisa Fernandez, MEDIANEWS STAFF
Article Created: 04/09/2008 03:31:20 AM PDT
Aziz Howard Raqmond James was considered a rising star in Bay Area hip hop. A talented 24-year-old Santa Cruz rapper, he performed throughout California. But James — known to audiences as "Almighty Aziz" — became suddenly violent at a party last weekend following a performance by his group, according to relatives and friends. He stabbed two friends and a police dog, then was fatally shot by Santa Clara police officers.
It should have ended differently, those close to him said Tuesday. They question whether police did everything they could to defuse the situation before using deadly force. They wonder why officers couldn't have negotiated with James or used a stun gun on him.
"Aziz was trippin'," said longtime friend and fellow rapper Eric Munoz, 24, of Watsonville, who goes by the name Ghambit. "I was like, 'Dog, what's happening, bro? What's wrong?' And we tried to warn the cops: Don't send in the dogs. But that's what they did. It just got out of control."
James' brother, Howard James III of Santa Cruz, can't believe his younger brother — his sidekick — is gone.
"We went everywhere together," he said Tuesday. "My parents are devastated. He was their baby. I just don't think police did everything they could have. Why didn't they even try to talk to him, at least over a phone? He wanted their help."
Police won't say much about the deadly predawn scene — the first officer-involved fatal shooting in Santa Clara since 2005. Officer Scott Fitzgerald, a 16-year veteran of the force, and Officer Troy Johnsen, an eight-year veteran, were placed on routine administrative leave following the shooting. As is standard, the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office is investigating.
"It would be inappropriate to discuss the tactics used, since this is still being investigated," Lt. Mike Sellers said. "But you need to look at the totality of the situation. Here's a person who stabs a person at a party, jumps through a glass-plate window, runs to a neighbor's house, jumps through their window and then stabs another friend who tried to calm him down. He may be a nice guy, but my concern is what the officers were faced with."
Officers resort to deadly force, Sellers said, when someone is believed to "cause imminent harm to himself or another human being.
"I appreciate all the questions people are asking. It's an unfortunate thing," he said.
Aziz James, a graphic artist, grew up in Watsonville and Aptos. He and his group, the Warlordz, had wrapped up a gig at Avalon Night Club in Santa Clara and were partying with about a dozen people at a house on Crystal Drive early Saturday morning. Around 3 a.m., James called his older brother.
"He was jokin' around. He seemed to be fine then," Howard James III, a drug rehabilitation counselor, told MediaNews.
But friends say he began acting paranoid and then, Munoz said, he went berserk.
James stabbed a friend and jumped through a window, running out of the party. Munoz said people were drinking beer at the party, and perhaps smoking a little pot. But he never knew James to take hard drugs — in fact, he preached against hard drugs. Munoz can't understand what happened.
"He was frightened," Munoz said.
James ran two houses down and entered another by breaking a window, police said. He also ended up stabbing another friend who came to calm him down. Friends won't identify the stabbing victims, but said they are both out of the hospital.
James had no known criminal record in California. His brother said he has no known history of mental illness. Friends theorize someone may have spiked James' drink or marijuana with something stronger.
Friends and family say they will lodge a formal protest and complaint against Santa Clara police for their handling of the situation.
When Howard James arrived at the scene about 5 a.m. — his brother had called him at 3:52 a.m. saying there were "people out to kill him" — he tried asking police to go inside and talk his brother down.
The answer was no.
Finally, at 6 a.m., Howard James saw two police dogs go inside the home.
"I heard them breaking down the door," he said. "I heard dogs barking. Then I hear the gunshots. Six fast ones, then two more. Like firecrackers."
A police radio barked out: Shots fired, shots fired. Paramedics, then fire crews, arrived — and left. But no one came out on a stretcher.
"I knew he was dead," his brother said. "A Sunnyvale cop said, 'I'm sorry for your loss.'"
Funeral arrangements are pending.
