Orange, Calif. — In response to the police shooting and murder of Brandon Lopez, a Santa Ana resident who family and local officials say was experiencing a mental health crisis and posed no threat to others, the Chairwoman of the Democratic Party of Orange County called the shooting a murder, and released a statement urging justice.

Ada Briceño, Chairwoman of the Democratic Party of Orange County, stated:

“The murder of Brandon Lopez at the hands of police is an outrageous betrayal of public trust. Our nation is enduring an epidemic of police brutality and a failure of mental health crisis support. These twin injustices are ravaging our communities, and are preventable. 

Having spoken with Santa Ana Councilmember Jonathan Hernandez, I want to make it clear that I stand with him and his family in their journey for justice. We need justice for Brandon Lopez. We need full mental health crisis support in every community. We must put an end to police brutality. 

I commend California Attorney General Rob Bonta for opening an investigation and raising awareness of police brutality and mental health crisis intervention in Orange County. It is our hope that Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer can investigate and release findings in a timely manner.

The Democratic Party of Orange County stands firm with all those unjustly affected by police abuse and violence, especially our Black community and communities of color. We condemn systemic police violence, militarized police forces, lack of accountability, and the callous reactions of authorities to community pain. We are all called to act for justice.”

The Democratic Party of Orange County’s formal Resolutions, or statements of values that are adopted by the Central Committee, include at least four condemning police brutality. Resolutions also call for an end to police brutality and racial profiling, accountability for law enforcement, timely investigations, and investment in social services as an alternative to militarized policing. 

About the Democratic Party of Orange County

Once famously known as “Reagan country,” after President Reagan called Orange County the place where “all good Republicans go to die,” Orange County is rapidly shifting from a Republican stronghold into a highly diverse Democratic metropolis. Over the past four years, Orange County Democrats built a 5-point gain in voter registration and now outpace the OC GOP by more than two points.

Chairwoman Ada Briceño, a longtime labor organizer, Co-President of UNITE HERE Local 11, and Democratic National Committee member, is the first immigrant and second Latina to lead the Democratic Party of Orange County. At age 23, Executive Director Ajay Mohan became the youngest person and first Indian-American to hold that role.

Orange County Democrats keep scoring historic victories in recent elections. In 2018, they famously swept all seven Congressional seats in Orange County. In 2019, OC Democrats overtook countywide voter registration to become the region’s leading political party. In 2020, OC Democrats flipped 20 local seats and two state senate seats from red to blue, including in deep-red areas of the county. In 2021, OC Democrats powered Katrina Foley to become the first Democrat to represent the Orange County Board of Supervisors’ 2nd District in 127 years and the first female Democrat to serve in the Board’s history. 

Orange County is the nation’s sixth largest county, with 3.2 million residents and more than 650,000 registered Democratic voters. 

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For Immediate Release – October 5, 2021