At an October 1 press conference in front of Salinas City Hall, family members of Frank Alvarado reacted to the Salinas Police Department’s release of names of officers who shot and killed four Salinas residents in separate incidents this year — all four were Latino men in East Salinas.
The press conference was coordinated by Margaret Serna Bonetti, a civil and human rights activist in Salinas advocating on behalf of the families of Carlos Mejia and Frank Alvarado. Bonetti, who stated she is not being paid for her advocacy, serves as a link between the families and Oakland-based attorney John Burris. On behalf of the Mejia and Alvarado families, Burris asked the US Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division in July to investigate incidents and patterns of police brutality by SPD.