The City of Brentwood will release video footage of police interaction with a 72-year-old woman who died from a head injury after an officer allegedly slammed her against a patrol car.
Mayor Susannah Meyer said recordings will be turned over to the family of Yolanda Ramirez and made public no later than Feb. 28, according to an update on investigations Wednesday.
Ramirez’s family has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the city alleging that Officer Aaron Peachman violently detained Ramirez on Sept. 26, 2025, and then left her injured and unresponsive in the back seat of a patrol car for at least 20 minutes.
She died Oct. 3 after emergency surgery to repair a brain bleed.
“We are committed to transparency, accountability, and due process, and we will share verified information as it becomes appropriate to do so,” Meyer said in a statement.
“To that end, and given the progress of the investigations, we are directing staff to release footage of the police contact with Ms. Ramirez first to the family and then to the public, no later than Feb. 28, 2026,” Meyer said.
City will contest civil rights lawsuit
In a closed session on Tuesday, the Brentwood City Council voted 4-0, with one council member absent, to authorize the city’s Legal Department to defend the lawsuit.
The Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office is investigating the incident, according to Interim Police Chief Walter O’Grodnick.
The police department has turned over 911 recordings, body-worn camera footage, in-car camera footage and reports to prosecutors, he said.
“I want the Ramirez family and the community to know that I am fully committed to professionalism, accountability, objectivity, fairness, and adherence to the law and constitutional rights,” O’Grodnick said in a statement.
Officers first encountered Yolanda Ramirez outside a home on Broderick Drive, where she had gone to pick up her elderly brother for a doctor’s appointment. When he didn’t answer the door, she called out to try to get his attention and got into an argument with her sister, according to the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court on behalf of her husband, Rudolf Ramirez, and their three children.
“I want the Ramirez family and the community to know that I am fully committed to professionalism, accountability, objectivity, fairness, and adherence to the law and constitutional rights.”
Interim Police Chief Walter O’Grodnick
Brentwood police were summoned to a reported dispute between two elderly women, and Peachman and an unidentified female officer arrived.
The lawsuit maintains Yolanda Ramirez was cooperative and spoke to the female officer outside, while Peachman spoke to her sister inside the home.
At some point, the female officer yelled out that Yolanda Ramirez was fleeing, despite never giving her any commands, according to the lawsuit.
“Defendant Peachman barreled out of the house and grabbed Mrs. Ramirez’s arm, while the female Defendant Officer grabbed her from the opposite side. Mrs. Ramirez cried out in pain and confusion,” the lawsuit claims.
Suit alleges Ramirez was denied medical attention
Peachman allegedly pushed his forearm against the back of her neck, and her head struck the patrol car. After that, the lawsuit claims, Yolanda Ramirez was left in the car for at least 20 minutes before the officer came back to check on her.
“All of the officers returned to look at Mrs. Ramirez but failed to interact with her or provide medical care,” the lawsuit alleges.
An ambulance arrived a few minutes later and Yolanda Ramirez underwent emergency brain surgery at John Muir Medical Center. She was taken off life support on Oct. 3.
In a statement after Ramirez’s death, O’Grodnick said in November that “she was placed under a citizen’s arrest at the request of a family member” following “a family dispute.”
“When officers arrived, Ms. Ramirez attempted to flee the scene. Officers detained Ms. Ramirez, and after being secured in a patrol vehicle, officers noticed she appeared to be having a medical issue, and they immediately contacted medical personnel,” according to an email O’Grodnick sent to media outlets.