Concord police on Friday released video footage and dispatch recordings from an incident on Dec. 1 in which officers fatally shot a 60-year-old man who they alleged was attacking his elderly parents.
Donald James Everson was shot by at least one of two officers who fired multiple shots at him when he didn’t drop a knife and plastic gun he was holding inside the home in the 900 block of Oasis Drive shortly after 11:45 a.m., police said.
Officers performed life-saving measures, including CPR, on Eversen but he was pronounced dead at the scene, according to police.
Concord police said in the video that, “By releasing this video we are not drawing any conclusions about this incident or rendering any findings.”
They said, “Our goal is to present the information to that the community has a better understanding about what happened that day.”
The video begins with the recording of a 911 call in which Eversen’s 85-year-old mother and 90-year-old father told a dispatcher that Eversen was acting erratically and possibly was under the influence of drugs and alcohol.
Eversen’s mother told the dispatcher that they had had problems with Eversen in the past, that they recently had taken him to a psychiatric ward and were planning to get a restraining order against him the next day.
When officers arrived outside the house, the dispatch recording indicates that Eversen told his father, “You better tell them to leave or I’ll kill them” and, “I’m going to kill some cops if they don’t turn around.”
Concord police said in their statement on the video that officers used a public address system to try to get Eversen to leave the home but weren’t successful.
The recording shows that Eversen’s father then came out of the house, having suffered severe bleeding in his face.
The father told officers that his wife also was hurt so officers decided to enter the home because there was a potential threat to her life, police said.
The video shows that when officers broke down the front door and entered the house they discovered that Eversen had a knife in his right hand and was straddling his mother.
The officers yelled at Eversen to stop what he was doing but he didn’t comply and the video indicates that they fired approximately 10 shots at him.
Eversen’s parents were then taken to a local hospital, where they were treated for serious injuries.
Concord police said, “We’re hopeful Mr. and Mrs. Eversen as expected will recover from the injuries they suffered in this tragic incident.”
Police said the shooting is being investigated by the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office and also will be reviewed by a coroner’s inquest jury.
Unfortunate and tragic for all involved.
My heart goes out to the parents and the police that had to go through that nightmare
What an awful thing to happen to this elderly couple all the way around. Concord PD did the right thing in my opinion. He probably would have killed his mother. I hope they can somehow get through this and live in peace for the rest of their lives.
Sad story. Not sure why this video was released, I was not aware that anyone thought the police were misstelling the story or had acted improperly. The video didn’t tell me anything I didn’t already know. Just feel extra bad for the parents now. Sad story.
The overwhelming majority of Claycordians support the police, but there are the usual suspects here that always blame the cops for everything.
Old Fart – There are those who believe the police are trigger happy and lie about the facts surrounding incidents such as this one. Even after seeing the video and the imminent danger the mother was in, they will say the police should have used non-lethal weapons or talked the knife out of the son’s hand. I saw a team of professionals doing a job that deals with the ugly side of humanity. It is a no-win situation, but one that had to be dealt with head-on and with urgency.
Transparency is a good thing, it shows in this case how everyone involved handled the matter properly and with professionalism. There’s lots of other videos out there showing cops not acting in this manner. Its not all or nothing people, reward people for doing the right thing, as they did in this case, not based on what side your on.
@what the ??
I think people also miss the forest for the trees, in the sense of, they see news coverage of police abusing their power, but don’t consider the context much. They just assume that every PD out there is like that, and TBH I can’t really imagine how frustrating it must be for a cop in a completely unrelated part of the country to be treated like the criminals/monsters that his/her actually-bad colleagues are guilty of being.
CPD has only been professional in all the time I and my family have lived in Concord. It’s not to say that police *can’t* be corrupt or power-mad, but, I think CPD does an excellent job of staying out of that mess and doing their best on duty.
Even though mom and dad are alive, I’m sure this is a sad day for the family. Having had a mentally ill brother I can say that I worried for my parent’s safety, and only later in life did they reveal some incidents which should have been reported to the police. They loved him, but he was a danger off his meds.
I count this as a failure to address a health problem. Either out of too much stigma, or insufficient resources… or hell, maybe both. I believe that asylums should make a comeback–more humane, but also more secure, given what we as a society know now about mental illness and the dangers it poses both to the mentally ill person themselves, and the people around them.
(Obviously not saying “lock them all up”–but the severe cases should absolutely be kept somewhere safe, clean, and have their sickness treated/managed.)
Cue the Naysayers…. in 3….. 2….. 1….. 👇
That’s a tough one for everyone involved.
Terrible ordeal for the parents to have to go through. My heart goes out to them.
With that said, Concord PD did the right thing and these officers are exemplary with the stuff they face day in and day out – special shout out from this citizen to Sgt. Graham (per body camera) for charging in without knowing what was on the other side of that door.
These officer’s actions saved a life.
Thumbs up
How Sad For All Involved . 85 and 90 years old and to go through this . I Hope they can get past this and still find joy in their lives .
Brave cops with a good plan.
The “Thank you for holding.” got my attention right away. I’m guessing they were asked if they had an emergency and said no, so dispatch must have dealt with another matter.
The marijauna comment shows the father’s age. No stoner goes whacko like this: alcohol and meth make people do viscous things.
I’ve seen news reports about some civic leaders complaining that the police acted too often in a military manner. I’m not sure what else they’re supposed to do in fluid situations that involve threats to life.
I feel so badly for the Everson’s. They appear to be a decent elderly couple who’s older son either lost his way, or never found it. I hope they can get thru this without giving up on life.
A quote from WebMD: People who used pot on a daily basis were three times more likely to have a first-time diagnosis of psychosis, and five times more likely if they used high-potency marijuana every day, researchers said.
Not saying it’s the case here, but sometimes parents get the children they deserve.
And sometimes they don’t,
Atticus Thraxx really unnecessary comment. Didn’t your parents teach you if you have nothing nice to say then say nothing at all?
And sometimes children are unworthy of the parents they are fortunate enough to have. Let’s hope these folks can find a way to have some peace now that this ordeal is over.
You guys might be right, heck probably are right. I don’t know these people. But I’m big on you reap what you sow. And that manifests itself in child rearing more that just about anything else I can think of. And I don’t assume just because someone is elderly, they’re kind and good people. Monstrous people grow old too.
AT, how did you come away with THAT after watching this video? I first thought someone had commandeered your keyboard…
Sad that anyone was killed
Cpd done what they had to do
Unfortunately the video was put online
The victims dont need the memories
God help them
And people plz refrain from bad mouthing
None of us were involved
Those poor parents, what a horrible thing to go thru. God bless them. I’m sure their physical wounds have healed but I pray they are able to heal emotionally from this.
I feel for those poor people. For all that they’ve been through, and now for the awful pain they will suffer the rest of their lives. That said, I had done my son’s very last load of laundry when he was thirty, and I realize even that was much too late. Sixty is way past ridiculous.
Aunt Barbara, you went all judgy there yourself. Tut-tut.
What a great job by the Concord Police Department. I don’t think anyone could reasonably expect them to handle it any better than that.
What a horrible situation. Thank God the police officers took action as they probably saved the two elderly parents lives. I hope they make a full recovery.
Sad situation for all. CPD very professional.
These police officers are heroes! Thank you Concord PD
@Old Fart, it is now a State law that all Officer involved shootings/Body Worn Camera footage have to be released to the media within 45 days of the incident. Research AB748.
Thanks, Paul.Barnes,
Good law, and believe that law enforcement do the right thing 95 percent of the time, but will wait and see how many times the statement will be “footage unavailable due to camera malfunction, or camera was damaged in altercation “….. for those 5 percent of the bad apples.
Excellent job by the officers and dispatchers. They had a plan reacted to a developing scene and their reaction was totally appropriate… god bless the officers and dispatchers. Prayers for the family
When this story broke, people had been asking about taser guns. The problem is that tasers don’t work in close range situations like this. A taser releases two electrical prongs that disperse away from each other as they travel forward. There is an optimal distance between the two prongs when they hit a target for the electrical charge to be effective. In such a close range situation, there isn’t enough travel time for them to move apart far enough. If a taser had been used, it is very likely that it would not have been effective.
The police didn’t have a tool that could have resolved this particular situation in a non-lethal way. Partially because of the close spacial proximity of everyone involved, partially because of how quickly the police had to act to save the mother, and partially because there aren’t a lot of non-lethal weapon options available on the market for law enforcement.
I see any device used for non-lethal purposes as more of a tool rather than a weapon. Doesn’t make any sense to go into a relatively unknown hostile environment with a tool rather than a weapon as was used in this case.
I can’t help but think about how difficult the job of a police officer is in this situation, especially if it is your first time. Great work CPD.
Please consider donating to NAMI, an organization dedicated to mental health issues. We often, and my family has had to do so with my schizo-affected brother, to rely on police to help in crisis.
Please look up NAMI, what they do, the meetings and education they offer. Until then, I hope local, state and federal government funds flow to help our mentally ill population. The police are doing their best. God bless our Concord police for the kind response and humane they have treated my very mentally ill brother. Many instances of trouble with him. Thank you CPD.
Great Job CPD That was a very sad situation… wasn’t anything they could do that guy was stabbing his parents. It really does give you perspective. I have a new found respect for police. That was such a dangerous situation to walk into. God Bless the Good cops who risk their lives everyday.
Great job CPD and so sorry to the parents.
So Burris and your gang why have you not offered your services to this family-oh I guess it is because they are white and not like the family in Walnut Creek which your cronies could not wait to get on social media saying how awful that the son-grandson was killed even though they also called the WCPD for assistance.
Reverse double standard?????