Slain Man’s Mother Denies He Provoked Officer : Trial: Amanda Martinez testifies that she saw the muzzle flash when her son was shot at her birthday party in Westminster.

In the second day of emotional testimony, the mother of Frank Martinez told jurors Friday that she saw her son fatally shot by a police officer at her 41st birthday party two years ago, but never saw him threaten or provoke the officer.

“I saw a muzzle flash. . . , “ Amanda Martinez said. “I never dreamed (her son) was going to die. I mean, I knew he had gotten shot, but I didn’t know it was going to be that bad.”

Asked if she could see her son’s hands from where she stood, the distraught mother said, “Yes.”

“Did he have a beer bottle in his hands?” said attorney Christopher B. Mears, who is representing the family.

“No. I saw no bottle,” she said.

Westminster Police Officer Steven Phillips has contended that he shot Martinez in self-defense during a melee in the family’s back yard on July 15, 1988. Phillips has said Frank Martinez, 18, came at him with a broken beer bottle.

Phillips is accused in a multimillion-dollar federal lawsuit of using excessive force and violating the civil rights of Frank Martinez and the Martinez family. If the jury finds that he was negligent and violated those rights, damages could also be sought against the city of Westminster in a separate trial.

Phillips’ attorney, Bruce D. Praet, tried to impeach Amanda Martinez’s testimony by pointing out that in her statement to police after the shooting, she said she did not see the fatal shot being fired. But in court, Martinez said with certainty that she did see the muzzle flash.

More than once, Praet has attempted to describe the Martinezes’ Olive Street neighborhood in Westminster’s west side as a gang neighborhood.

The defense has tried to show that officers walked into an explosive situation because the Martinezes live in a violent neighborhood populated by gang members. Police have also contended that Frank Martinez was either a gang member or associated with gang members.

But during her testimony, Amanda Martinez said most of her birthday guests that night were middle-aged friends, including top officials and staff of the Westminster Boys Club, where Frank worked as a recreational aide.

When her husband, Joel Martinez Sr., testified Friday, he angrily denied that his son was a gang member and that the family lives in a gang neighborhood.

“Just because you live in a neighborhood with all Spanish (speaking) people doesn’t mean you’re in a gang or live in a gang neighborhood,” Joel Martinez said.

After her son was shot, Amanda Martinez said, she tried to go to his aid but was stopped repeatedly by friends and police.

“I never got to see him,” the mother tearfully testified. “I wanted to get to him but people kept preventing me from seeing him. Even at the hospital the doctors didn’t let me see him. He died, and I never got to see him.”

Both parents told jurors that the shooting has disrupted family life.

One son has become very cold and distant. A young daughter who was 7 years old when her brother was killed has constant nightmares. Another son blames himself for the incident, and the family avoids talking about the affair.

“Christmas is not the same. Thanksgiving is not the same. Nothing is the same. We just don’t do anything together anymore,” Amanda Martinez said.

Frank Martinez was described by his parents as a student who suffered from dyslexia, which made him a slow learner in school. He wanted to find a career that combined sports and working with children.

In an ironic twist, his mother testified that her son once took an aptitude test that indicated a career in law enforcement. “He told people he wanted to become a police officer because he felt he wanted to help people. He always felt that the police were his friends.”