Kao Family Appeal

******************************************************************* A Holiday Fundraising Appeal and Update on Justice for the Kao Family Your Help and Continued Support is Needed ******************************************************************* Dear Members of the APA Community: If you're reading this you probably heard of the outrageous killing of Kuanchung Kao, a 33 year-old Asian American computer professional. Mr. Kao had immigrated to the U.S. from Taiwan and studied microbiology at Sonoma State University, only a few blocks from his home in the northern California suburb of Rohnert Park, where he was shot to death by police on April 28, 1997. Mr. Kao was intoxicated and wielding a stick at the time that police were called because he was disturbing the peace in front of his home. The police justified shooting Mr. Kao because he appeared to be in a "Ninja Pose"--but after shooting him they refused to let Ayling Wu, Mr. Kao's wife and a registered nurse, apply first aid; instead they handcuffed the bleeding man and threatened to arrest Mrs. Kao if she tried to assist her husband. Mr. Kao bled to death before an ambulance came. The police left Mr. Kao's body in the driveway for 11 hours after killing him. The couple's six-year-old daughter also witnessed the killing and was aware that her daddy lay dead in front of the house. (A more complete account of the events that night can be found below.) A great deal has happened since his killing last April by the Rohnert Park Police--much of which has been discouraging. A coalition of groups, led by the Asian Law Caucus of SF, has been working very hard in pursuit of justice in the belief that Kuanchung Kao would be alive today if he had not been Asian, and the family would have been treated differently had they been white. The coalition has approached the U.S. Department of Justice (they will be issuing an opinion on federal civil rights violations, but the initial indications are not good); Senator Boxer and Feinstein's offices have made half-hearted efforts; the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights has rejected our request for a hearing; the local district attorney has cleared the killer cop. This August, a candlelight vigil and a demonstration were held in San Francisco. These were very well-attended but unfortunately received almost no media coverage (incredibly, the demonstration was held at the same time as the Asian American Journalist Association convention--so nobody in the San Francisco newsrooms thought it was newsworthy!!!) A leading SF Bay area attorney was engaged to file a civil suit on the Kao family's behalf. A very disappointing experience happened with the Montel Williams show--they asked Mrs. Kao to travel to NYC to tell her story on TV. Though this was a very hard request, she agreed to go, but then the Montel Williams people canceled her segment because they had booked too many guests! The experience was very devastating for Mrs. Kao, since she had to prepare herself to open her grief up to the TV audience. (You can call the producers to voice your indignation: the executive producer Mary Duffee (212) 830-0308 and fax (212) 262-3731.) Meanwhile, Mrs. Kao--Ayling Wu--the widow of Kuanchung Kao, is struggling to support herself and her three young children on one income, while also working with the legal and volunteer efforts. In addition to the six-year-old daughter, there are two-year-old twin boys. As a single parent now, her costs for childcare and so forth have increased dramatically, while her family income has been drastically reduced. She is very worried about living in the same community as the police of Rohnert Park who killed her husband and threatened to arrest her--yet she has no other options. It is especially difficult when the local politicians and media have portrayed her and the Asian American community as bringing negative attention to "their" community. During this holiday season, if you have any money to contribute, we, the volunteers of the Justice for Kao Campaign, are asking if you could please make two tax-deductible contributions: "Redwood Empire Chinese Association/Kao Family" This is a fund that goes directly to Ayling Wu and her family for their expenses. Please send checks to the: Redwood Empire Chinese Association P.O Box 4473 Petaluma, CA 94955. Checks must designate "Kao Family" in the memo line; the group is a 501c3 organization and contributions are tax deductible. We hope you will also consider a donation to the organizing efforts. Checks can be made out to "Asian Law Caucus/Kao Defense Fund." Send to: Asian Law Caucus 720 Market St, #500 San Francisco, CA 94102 This group is also 501c3 and contributions are tax deductible. Legal and organizing efforts are anticipated to continue for some time; however, at the end of the campaign, any remaining monies will go to the Kao Family. Please call the Asian Law Caucus at 415-391-1655 if you have any questions. Thank you for your continued support, which has been critical to our efforts to bring justice to Kuanchung Kao and his Family, and to eliminate this kind of injustice. We are in the process of constructing a website that will provide information on where to direct letters, phone calls and emails. ************************************************************* A brief summary of the events that night follows. ************************************************************* What Happened on April 28, 1997 Mr. Kuanchung Kao, 33, went to a Cotati bar to meet with a friend on the night of April 28 1997 to discuss a new business arrangement. Mr. Kao remained at the bar for approximately 6-7 hours and consumed a number of drinks. His blood alcohol was determined to be a 0.23 at a later point, three times the legal limit to operate a vehicle. While at the bar, a few individuals thought it would be amusing to harass an intoxicated man by continuously racially taunting him through the night. As the night progressed, Mr. Kao became enraged and physically challenged his taunters. He was involved in several scuffles with people who restrained him. At one point, he was stabbed over an eye with a dart. Cotati police officers responded and refused Mr. Kao's demands to arrest those who had provoked and assaulted him. Seeing that he was severely intoxicated they put him in a taxi cab and escorted him home around 2 a.m. After he was dropped off at his house, Mr. Kao began screaming in the middle of the street, yelling "Neighbors, please help me.' He took off his shirt and assumed a praying position in the middle of the street, clawing the ground and crying for help. Ms. Kao came out of their home and tried to quiet him but he shoo'ed her away. Many of the neighbors called 911 and reported that a man was screaming and acting crazy. Rohnert Park Public Safety Officers Mike Lynch and Jack Shields responded within five minutes with sirens and lights flashing. While they were enroute, Mr. Kao retrieved a wooden rod 6 feet long and less than one inch thick. He was seen by many people to be twirling and fiddling with the stick. As the two Rohnert Park police units arrived, they shut off their overhead lights and sirens and shone a spotlight into Mr. Kao's face to disorient and distract him. Lynch, in the lead, decided to try to scare Mr. Kao into dropping the stick by acting as if he was going to run him over with the police car. At a fast pace, Lynch raced down the half block and screeched to a stop within a few feet of where Mr. Kao was standing. Angry and confused, Mr. Kao hit the car several times. Lynch called out to his partner via radio, "Stay in your car Jack." But instead of trying to defuse the situation, as Mr. Kao retreated at one point, Lynch saw Shields exit his car and Lynch knew at that point that Shields "was going to take the guy on physically." As Shields got out of his car, Mr. Kao returned and took a few steps closer still holding the stick in front of him parallel to the ground as if to "joust" or "prod" or keep Shields at bay. Shields drew his weapon and within seconds, shot Mr. Kao once in the chest. Mrs. Kao, a registered nurse, ran to her husband to try to administer first aid but the officers restrained her and threatened her with arrest. Mr. Kao was handcuffed and left face down unattended for 8-9 minutes before Lynch began to attempt medical treatment. When the paramedics arrived one minute later, it was too late to save Mr. Kao's life. The District Attorney and the Sonoma County Sheriffs were called to investigate the officers' actions and began by securing a search warrant for the Kao residence to search for martial arts paraphernalia to prove Mr. Kao was a dangerous person. The police have attempted to justify the killing by saying that Mr. Kao had stood in a Ninja pose; it is reported that they have gone to several martial arts studios in an attempt to find someone who will say that Mr. Kao knew martial arts. However, this was not the case, and their efforts to racially characterize Mr. Kao have been unsuccessful. Nevertheless, on June 19, 1997, District Attorney Mike Mullins cleared the officers of any criminal charges. There have been eight deaths at the hands of Sonoma County peace officers in the past two years, and every case has been ruled justifiable homicide by the District Attorney. The grand jury of Sonoma County in its own investigation has determined that the protocol used in investigating officer-involved shootings is flawed and inadequate and that Sonoma County peace officers are unresponsive to citizen complaints of police misconduct. Organization of Chinese Americans 1001 Connecticut Avenue, N.W. Suite #707 Washington, D.C. 20036 Tel:(202)223-5500 Fax:(202)296-0540 Voice Mail:(202)223-5523 E-Mail: oca@ari.net World Wide Web: http://www2.ari.net/oca