'Turn his murder into entertainment': Corrections officers spend 3 full minutes recording the murder of an inmate on their phones while doing nothing to help, lawsuit says

The household of a antheral stabbed to decease wrong a California situation has filed a lawsuit alleging that situation employees recorded the onslaught alternatively of helping.

According to the lawsuit, which was reviewed by Law&Crime, 36-year-old Joseph Mendoza was serving a 22-year situation word astatine Salinas Valley State Prison successful January 2025 erstwhile helium was caught with drugs that helium intended to administer to chap inmates. After the bust, Mendoza told prison guards that helium feared for his life, citing a "predictable and important menace of convulsive retaliation" from the Norteño situation gang. Mendoza formally requested respective times to beryllium moved to protective custody, but helium was ne'er moved retired of wide population.

Other inmates recovered retired astir Mendoza's request, and the suit stated that this "escalat[ed] the hazard to his life."

According to the lawsuit, Mendoza was attacked connected April 8, 2025, by 2 inmates associated with the Norteño situation gang, Nicolas Young and Edgar Frayre. While the 3 men were connected the "dayroom floor," which was known by unit arsenic a "high-risk" area, Young and Frayre allegedly stabbed Mendoza "nearly 180 times" with shanks. Mendoza sustained deep, penetrating wounds to his head, face, neck, torso, and back.

Over the people of 3 minutes, and arsenic clip for Mendoza ran out, equipped corrections officers watched from supra and recorded the onslaught connected their phones, the suit says. Rather than effort to intervene and halt the attack, the officers "stood by and observed" portion Mendoza was "butchered" and bled to decease connected the floor, according to the complaint.

The officers allegedly ne'er called for backup, nor did they get aesculapian assistance for Mendoza until it was excessively late. Mendoza was pronounced dormant astatine the scene.

The suit alleged that the officers who were contiguous for the onslaught failed to sphere grounds astatine the scene. Instead, pursuing the onslaught and Mendoza's death, employees astatine the situation shared the video of the onslaught and posted it to societal media. The video of the "graphic assault" and Mendoza's "mutilated remains" went viral, and it was seen by Mendoza's household members, who person suffered "profound intelligence and affectional trauma" connected apical of their grief.

More from Law&Crime: 'Why don't you conscionable termination yourself, motherf—er?': Prison officers 'encouraged' weeping inmate's termination portion helium sat successful isolation wrong 'black box,' suit says

During a press conference connected Wednesday with Mendoza's household and their ineligible squad that was covered by section Fox affiliate KMPH, lawyer Bryan Harrison said, "This was raw, bloody slaughter and nary 1 had the close to crook his execution into entertainment. It's perverse."

In an interview with different section Fox affiliate, KTVU, Mendoza lawyer Adante Pointer of Pointer & Buelna LLP, said, "We person not heard a peep from CDCR arsenic to who did this," adding, "All of the officers progressive should beryllium summarily fired." No officers are identified by sanction successful the lawsuit.

The probe into the stabbing is inactive ongoing. In tribunal documents reviewed by Law&Crime, California Attorney General Rob Bonta denied the claims made successful the lawsuit. In a press release issued soon aft the killing, the CDCR stated that Mendoza was provided aesculapian assistance aft the attack.

Mendoza's begetter told KTVU, "I'm not looking for revenge." He wants to marque definite "somebody else's lad oregon girl doesn't travel location successful a box."