Mother Of Man Shot, Killed By Edinburg PD Makes Emotional Appeal To City Commission
Photo Above: Lydia Villarreal speaks to the Edinburg City Council, screen capture from Edinburg City video feed.
Edinburg, TX, Oct. 20, 2022
During the Public Comments section of this week’s Edinburg City Council, Lydia Villarreal, the mother of a man shot and killed by Edinburg police, made an emotional appeal to the City Council for a thorough investigation of the incident.
“I’m tired. I’ve been up since 5:30 am,” Villarreal told the Edinburg City Council. “I am the mother of Leroy Villarreal. He was shot and killed on September 27th. He was doing donuts in his truck on his in-laws property. He lived there. He kissed his wife goodbye and his daughter and came from work every night.”
Villarreal then spoke about some of the details of the incident.
“I was there that day. My son was reckless driving. He was shot in the back. It was gruesome. I haven’t seen him. I never will see him because I will not be the same. I think they could have done something better. They shot his over 30 times.”
“I want a thorough, transparent investigation. I feel like I need to know what really happened. I was there. I know what happened. But I want you to do your part, too, because I’m investigating myself because I’m a mother. He was my first born.”
“I don’t get paid for staying at home. I have to go work. I don’t think the cops should be getting paid after what they did.”
“They could have let me talk to him. I was right there in front. It’s one o’clock in the afternoon. Surely you know, when a police officer is walking next to you, that he’s unarmed. Thank you.”
Prior to the opening of the public comments section at every meeting, City Secretary explains that each speaker is limited to three minutes and that the City Council is prohibited from responding to the public comments.
However, Mayor Ramiro Garza Jr. did ask to say something to Ms. Villarreal. “I just want to say, Mrs. Villarreal my condolences to you and your family.”
Villarreal responded, “Thank you.”
Edinburg Police ended a stand-off with Leroy Villarreal, whom they thought to be armed as he sat in a pick up. However, Edinburg Police Chief Jaime Ayala later clarified that no gun was found at the scene.
At a press conference after the incident, Ayala said the incident started when the department received several calls about a person doing donuts in a field near or on Memorial Middle School. After arriving on the scene, police attempted to tak Villarreal to exit the vehicle.
Ayala added that, after about an hour of negotiations, Villarreal ran out of the truck, yelling aggressively at the police officers. Edinburg police responded by firing their weapons after it appeared that Villarreal had a makeshift shield and an object that might be a gun in his hand.
Villarreal fell down and officers started to treat him and called for emergency medical units to the scene. Villarreal was taken to a hospital where he passed away from his wounds.
Ayala added that several officers were put on administrative leave with pay.
Texas DPS officers were also on the scene. The shooting is being investigated by Texas Rangers and the Edinburg police internal affairs department.