Richmond Officer Who Killed Armed Man on Monday Has a Record of Police Misconduct, Lawsuits Allege

An officer who fatally shot a man in Richmond on Monday was also involved in a February police shooting and is named in multiple lawsuits alleging police misconduct since 2024.

Nicholas Remick was one of two officers who shot and killed a man identified by his family as Angel Montaño, 27, after a confrontation at a house in west Richmond, according to reporting by the Richmondside.

“That’s two people dead, who otherwise shouldn’t be dead, but for his conduct,” said civil rights attorney John Burris, who is currently bringing federal charges against Remick for excessive force against another man last year. “He’s involved in two shootings and a beating. I don’t know what his overall background is, but of course, there should be some limitation on his exposure to the public.”

Just after 5 p.m. on Monday, Remick and Officer Colton Stocking reportedly fired their guns after responding to a call that Montaño was armed with a knife and threatening to kill people on the 400 block of First Street.

According to the police department, the officers approached the door of a house where they could hear a commotion. Montaño came to the door armed with at least one knife, and after a confrontation, they shot and killed him, the department said.

The shooting happened just six months after Remick, who joined the Richmond Police Department in January 2023, was involved in the fatal shooting of 51-year-old Jose Mendez-Rios.

In February, Remick and Officer Jessica Khalil approached Mendez-Rios while searching for a man violating his probation. The department said in a press release that Mendez-Rios refused to cooperate, and after a 30-minute standoff, they shot him.

The officers believed Mendez-Rios was wielding a knife at the time, though the item was later identified as a sheath.

The shooting is still under investigation by the California Department of Justice.

Richmond police said Remick and Khalil were placed on administrative leave following the shooting. Spokesperson Donald Patchin said he returned to duty just two weeks later, on Feb. 20. Khalil has also returned to duty.

“Once the incident details appear to be clearly known, the police chief is briefed on the circumstances surrounding the incident. The chief then determines on a case-by-case basis whether or not the officer should be allowed to return to full duty pending the final outcome of the investigation,” he said in an email to KQED.

The Contra Costa County District Attorney’s office said it could not comment on pending investigations.

In May, Remick was also accused of using excessive force against a man who was filming a police chase the previous spring.

Kwesi Guss, a Richmond-based cowboy, said that in May 2024, he was standing outside of Joe’s Market near MacDonald Avenue when cars in a police chase stopped in front of the store.

He began to film the encounter, according to court filings, and was approached by Sergeant Alexander Caine, who pushed him repeatedly and yelled at him to move.

After a bystander intervened, Caine stopped pushing Guss, but shortly after, Remick approached him and “continued the assault,” according to the complaint.

“Caine and Remick grabbed [Guss], handcuffed him, and kicked him in his ankle, forcing him to the ground, placed their knees on [Guss’s] back and ribs, which forced the handcuffs deeper into [his] skin. The two officers then pushed [his] face into the ground,” the complaint continued.

Guss was treated for a head injury, rib bruising and lower back and wrist pain following the altercation, according to court filings.“Remick was not the first officer on the scene,” Burris, who is representing Guss, said. “He comes in afterwards and jumps into it, in a sense exacerbating the situation ostensibly and helping his partner who was already in the wrong.”

“Now, Remick has come up on our radar again, this time as a shooter … it’s not surprising,” he continued. “It’s not uncommon to me — officers who engage in misconduct in one case were involved in misconduct in another.”

Montaño’s family told KTVU that he was struggling with his mental health at the time of the shooting on Monday.

On a fundraising page set up by his cousin Liz Montaño to pay for funeral expenses, his family describes him as “a devoted son, brother, father and to many a loyal friend.”

“Angel brought light and strength into every room he entered,” the page reads.

Montaño had a young daughter and was a reserve officer with the U.S. Marines.