The family of a former Marine Jose Guerena, who was killed in a botched SWAT raid at home on the morning of May 5, 2011, settled with Pima County in the amount of $3.4 million.
The two-year legal battle came to an end after tearing the Southern Arizona community apart and raising questions about the leadership of Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik.
The 26-year-old Guerena was shot and killed by SWAT team members after working a graveyard shift at Asarco Mission Mine. Guerena and his wife, Vanessa, thought they were about to be victims of a home invasion. Guerena was holding an AR-15 rifle with its safety on when the SWAT members smashed open their front door.
Authorities believed that the former Marine was connected to his brother’s drug trafficking activity. Jose’s brother, Alejandro Ortiz Guerena, pleaded guilty to attempted possession of marijuana for sale and conspiracy to commit money laundering in May. Alejandro Ortiz Guerena’s wife, Pauline Guerena, was sentenced in July to four years probation for money laundering.
In the past two years, no evidence has surfaced to show that the former Marine had any involvement in his brother’s illegal activity.