Mexico Protests Deputy’s Killing of Reveler : New Year’s: The consulate cites a witness who disputes the official account that the man pointed his gun at the officer.

The Mexican government Thursday protested what it called the “wrongful” killing of a man who was shot to death by a Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy after the man had repeatedly fired his gun skyward to welcome the new year.

In a letter to Sheriff Sherman Block, Mexico’s consul general in Los Angeles demanded a thorough investigation into the shooting of Pedro Castaneda Gonzalez, a Mexican national who sheriff’s officials said was shot to death in El Monte when he turned his gun on a deputy.

A companion of Castaneda who witnessed the New Year’s incident disputed the department’s account of what happened. He told consular officials and The Times that Castaneda had thrown down the gun when the deputy approached and began firing.

“According to information provided by some eyewitnesses, the action of the sheriff deputy was not performed in accordance with the legal practices of the law enforcement officers,” Mexican Consul General Jose Angel Pescador Osuna said in a letter to Block.

“This consular representation wishes to express its indignation for the above mentioned sheriff’s officer’s conduct,” he continued. “We demand your office or any other government institution to perform an accurate investigation and, in the event that our information is confirmed, to punish accordingly whoever results responsible (for) this wrongful death.”

A sheriff’s spokeswoman confirmed receipt of the letter and said the incident was under investigation as a matter of routine policy.

“There’s always an investigation into every single deputy-involved shooting,” Sgt. Lynda Edmonds said.

“It’s ongoing and takes more than just a couple of days. When it is completed (and) we have the facts of the case, I’m sure (Block) will be willing to respond to any questions they (Mexican officials) have.”

Castaneda’s killing came in the midst of a high-profile campaign by law enforcement officials to stop the sometimes deadly practice of some New Year’s revelers to shoot weapons into the sky.

According to both the Sheriff’s Department and Castaneda’s friends and relatives, Castaneda, 28, and two companions were standing in the carport of their El Monte apartment building at midnight on New Year’s Eve. To celebrate the holiday, they fired a revolver into the air about 15 times, one of the companions, Luis Alberto Velasco, told The Times.

A six-year veteran deputy from the Temple City sheriff’s station, Brian Kazmierski, went to the apartment building to investigate the gunfire, a spokesman for the department said.

According to the Sheriff’s Department, the following happened:

Kazmierski spotted the three men and ordered Castaneda to drop the weapon; Castaneda ignored the warning, turned and pointed his gun at Kazmierski, who fired five times. Castaneda was dead at the scene.

Velasco, however, said the deputy never identified himself or issued any kind of warning before shooting. He said the deputy approached from down a darkened alley where the carport is located, shining a flashlight.

When Castaneda saw the light, he suspected it was the police and dropped the gun, Velasco said. The deputy then fired at Castaneda twice, Velasco said, adding that the stricken Castaneda fell to the ground. The deputy then fired three or four more rounds, Velasco said.

Only then did the officer identify himself, Velasco said, and as additional sheriff’s units arrived, Velasco, the other companion, Castaneda’s widow and his sister were handcuffed and taken in for questioning. They were released about four hours later, Velasco said.

Sgt. Dirk Edmundson, a homicide detective assigned to investigate the shooting, said late Thursday that the evidence so far supports the official account of what happened. He said that on arriving at the scene he found the gun “in very close proximity” to Castaneda’s body, indicating it had been in his hand and not thrown down.

Edmundson also said a witness had told him that the officer did shout a warning before shooting. Edmundson said, however, that loud music apparently was playing at the time.

“I’m not saying (Castaneda) heard the order, but our understanding is the officer said something and (Castaneda) turned toward him . . . with the gun in hand,” Edmundson said. “Fearing for his life, he (the deputy) fired five rounds.”

Castaneda’s family and friends sought help at the Mexican Consulate on Wednesday because the dead man, who worked at a Long Beach fiberglass firm, was a native of Jalisco, Mexico. His widow, Catalina, 20, hopes to bury the body there, attorney Jose Castorena said.

Castaneda also leaves behind a 40-day-old son.

Castorena said he expects to file a claim and eventually a wrongful-death lawsuit on behalf of Castaneda’s family against the county.

“I am not saying he (Castaneda) didn’t do anything wrong,” the attorney said, referring to the New Year’s gunplay, “. . . but what we are saying is that it was not necessary to kill him.”

A few hours after Castaneda was killed, Los Angeles police officers killed a man who they said had turned a gun on officers. Like Castaneda, the man, Nicolas Contreras, 26, had been shooting his gun into the air to mark the new year, police said. Mexican consulate officials have asked for a probe in that case as well.