SAN LEANDRO CITY LEADERS are inviting the public to an opening ceremony later this month for a pavilion commissioned in memory of a man who was shot dead by a police officer at a Walmart in the city in 2020.
The Steven Taylor Sanctity of Life Pavilion at Marina Park will consist of pedestrian pathways, amphitheater-style seating, and an art installation. The opening ceremony will take place on Jan. 24 from 10 a.m. to noon at 13791 Monarch Bay Drive, and is open to the public.
On April 18, 2020, security guards at the Walmart on Hesperian Boulevard called 911 to report that Taylor, 33, was threatening employees and customers, wielding a baseball bat. Jason Fletcher, then a San Leandro police officer, ordered Taylor to drop the bat. When Taylor refused, Fletcher fired his Taser stun gun and then fired a bullet into Taylor’s chest, killing him.
In September 2020, former Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O’Malley charged Fletcher with voluntary manslaughter. But years of delays ensued, with District Attorney Pamela Price being recused from the case over alleged bias before eventually being recalled from office.
On Dec. 12, 2025, an Alameda County Superior Court judge dismissed the case against Fletcher. During a review of the case, the office of District Attorney Ursula Jones Dickson, who replaced Price after the recall election, discovered that exculpatory evidence was allegedly withheld from the defense by prosecutors under Price’s administration.
Previous prosecutors had also consulted two expert witnesses who concluded that Fletcher acted in self-defense.
“It is an absolute truth that the loss of Steven Taylor’s life is a tragedy,” said Dickson in a statement at the time. “However, this office cannot prove beyond a reasonable doubt that a crime was committed.”
In February 2021, the San Leandro City Council voted to proclaim April 18 as a Day Recognizing Steven Taylor and the Sanctity of Every Human Life, Including People of Color. It reads:
“WHEREAS, according to contacts Steven Taylor had with the City of San Leandro Police Department, Steven Taylor had a history of suffering mental health crises in San Leandro before his death and that mental health aid or services could have helped him and/or could have helped to de-escalate the April 18, 2020 fatal shooting.”
Construction started this past summer on the pavilion that will also bear his name.
“I’m hoping that it sends a message that life is important and we have to hold on to it,” said Addie Kitchen, Taylor’s grandmother. “I’m hoping that this will heal the community as well as start to heal me and my family.”
Kitchen said that while Taylor’s family has not made peace with the dismissal of the charges against Fletcher, they will not be pursuing any legal action in the foreseeable future.
“It’s been five, almost six years, and that takes a lot from people. And I don’t want to go through that again,” she said.