Trial for APD officer who shot, killed man in 2022 begins

AUSTIN, Texas - The trial for an Austin police officer who shot and killed a man in 2022 has begun. 

Officer Daniel Sanchez is facing a deadly conduct charge for the shooting death of Raj Moonesinghe.

On Thursday morning, Sanchez pleaded not guilty.

Day 1 of trial

What they're saying:

The state claims Sanchez’s shooting was unlawful. Sanchez’s defense attorney said Sanchez used his training to respond to the shooting appropriately.

On November 15, 2022, at a little after midnight, police received a call about a man with a rifle outside a South Austin home.

On Ring door camera footage, Moonesinghe is seen outside on the porch of his home looking into his home and saying, "You want this? You sure? You’re f**ing stupid, you’re f**ing stupid."

He is seen on video shooting into his home twice as police arrive. Body camera footage shows while Sanchez was getting out of his car, the second shot was fired.

The state’s first expert witness, Chuck Joyner, a certified master police officer and law enforcement instructor, said Sanchez showed up with a rifle in a tactical, ready position.

Joyner said that isn’t how officers are trained to respond to these types of incidents and said he should have found cover, made commands, and then started dialog.

"You can’t assume someone is a deadly threat just because they have a rifle," Joyner said.

The body camera footage showed a slight pause between the first three shots and the last two. Joyner said that is significant in this case because Sanchez should have evaluated the effectiveness of his shots before firing again.

Sanchez’s attorney said Joyner has previously pointed out that he has seen officers delay their reactions to situations because they’ve been or have fear they will be prosecuted or sued, but Joyner also said it could be because they don’t know or understand the law.

Melody Bing, who lived next to Moonesinghe on the night of November 15, 2022, also took the stand. She described Moonesinghe as a "real nice kid."

Bing said she had a conversation with Moonesinghe that night while she was letting her dogs out. Moonesinghe is heard on Ring camera telling her someone was in his house. She told Moonesinghe to call police, but he didn’t. She also didn’t call the police.

The man who did call police took the stand next. His name is Kevin Hall. He was working for a security company at the time and guarding a house across the street from Moonesinghes. He said Moonesinghe had come up to him earlier in the night and asked if he saw anyone around his house. Hall said he told Moonesinghe he didn’t, but he would be on the lookout.

Hall said Moonesinghe then came out of his house with a rifle and pointed it at a house. He felt it was in an unsafe way, so he called the police.

It was revealed in court that Moonesinghe had cocaine in his system, and his blood alcohol level was a .33.

This trial is expected to last at least two weeks.