A former deputy sheriff will not face additional charges for killing Tyrell Wilson, a mentally unstable man in Danville, according to Wilson's father and the family attorney.
The Contra Costa County District Attorney's Office will make the announcement official on Friday.
Marvin Wilson wants to remember Tyrell as a former athlete and a good student. But he said he’s forced to face the fact that his son was suffering from mental illness when he was killed by former Contra Costa Sheriff’s Deputy Andrew Hall in March 2021.
“I lost my only child, my only son,” he said.
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Body cam video released by the sheriff’s department showed Tyrell with a knife. In the video, you can hear Hall ordering him to put it down before he opened fire on Tyrell in Danville.
Contra Costa County District Attorney Diana Becton told Marvin that the deputy involved will not be criminally charged with his son’s killing because her office can’t prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Hall broke the law when he fatally shot Tyrell.
“I’m disappointed but I’m not surprised,” Marvin Wilson said.
Marvin added that he’s not surprised, even though Hall was convicted last year of assault in the deadly shooting of Laudemer Arboleda in Danville back in 2018. He’s currently serving six years in San Quentin for that. Arboleda also had mental issues.
“I understand the DA’s position. I don’t agree with it other than I appreciate it. I do think there was sufficient evidence that would justify criminal prosecution,” said attorney John Burris.
Marvin said he understands both sides of the issue but he had another thought.
“I feel my child was supposed to bury me, not this way,” he said.
