Nelson Martinez Mendez, a 24-year-old Guatemalan immigrant, was shot and killed on August 8, 2001, in the parking lot of an East Bellevue condominium complex during an encounter with a Bellevue police officer. Officer Michael Hetle had been responding to a domestic-violence call and had been told Martinez Mendez might be armed with a knife. When Hetle ordered Martinez Mendez to show his hands, Martinez Mendez reached toward his waistband; Hetle fired two shots, and Martinez Mendez was later found to have been unarmed and reaching for his wallet.

The shooting prompted anger in the local Latino community and an investigation that went to an inquest jury. The jury concluded Officer Hetle had reason to fear for his life, and the King County Prosecutor’s Office subsequently ruled the shooting a justified homicide, with no criminal charges filed against the officer. Martinez Mendez’s mother, Maria Cleofe Mendez, and his estate later filed a federal lawsuit alleging inadequate training and discipline of the officer and a pattern of excessive force.

Does anyone have additional information about Nelson Martinez Mendez, his family, or witnesses to the August 8, 2001, incident?