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Dennis Martz

Age : 57

Gender : Male

Race : White

Date : 08/20/2025

Location : 27000 block of Freedom Lane, backyard

City : Menifee

County : Riverside

State : California

Agency : Menifee Police Department

Officer(s) :Not Disclosed

Cause of Death : Suicide

Event : Killed by police during mental health crisis

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

On 08/20/2025, at approximately 8:15 p.m., Menifee police officers responded to the 27000 block of Freedom Lane near Ensemble Drive after receiving reports that 57-year-old Dennis Martz was threatening suicide. Police said Martz was in the backyard of his residence and had access to multiple firearms.
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The initiating call was therefore a mental-health and suicide crisis rather than a report that Martz had committed a crime against another person. Menifee police spokesman Chase Coburn said neighbors reported that Martz was in his backyard with firearms and threatening to kill himself.
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Police said responding officers attempted to communicate with Martz but were unsuccessful. Members of the Menifee Police Department Crisis Negotiation Team were called to the residence and also attempted to establish contact with him. According to police, Martz did not respond to the negotiators.
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Police reported observing Martz in his backyard with multiple firearms. According to the department's account, Martz eventually pointed a firearm toward officers. Two Menifee police officers then opened fire, striking him.
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After the shooting, officers secured the firearms and provided medical treatment. Paramedics responded and continued lifesaving efforts, but Martz died from his gunshot wounds.
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Both officers who fired were placed on paid administrative leave under department policy. The Riverside County Force Investigations Detail assumed responsibility for investigating the shooting. The investigative team includes representatives of the Riverside County Sheriff's Department and Riverside County District Attorney's Office.
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Menifee Police Department's transparency site subsequently added a “Community Incident Debrief – August 20, 2025” specifically for this critical incident. The department maintains these debriefs pursuant to California's public-records requirements governing video and audio from police shootings and other critical uses of force.
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OFFICER BACKGROUND
Two Menifee police officers fired at Dennis Martz. Their identities have not been publicly disclosed in the news reports, later indexed coverage, or publicly searchable material located for this update.
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The Menifee Police Department itself was facing an extraordinary officer-misconduct case at the time Martz was killed. Just eight days before the shooting, Menifee Police Officer Juan Pesina was arrested following an independent Riverside County Sheriff's Department investigation into allegations that he sexually assaulted women he encountered through his position as a police officer.
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Pesina was subsequently charged with 15 felony counts involving five women, including rape, sodomy, forced oral copulation, assault with intent to commit rape and extortion. The alleged conduct occurred between 2023 and August 2025. Civil lawsuits were subsequently filed by two women accusing Pesina of sexual assault. One lawsuit also accused the City of Menifee and Menifee Police Department of negligence in retaining him despite alleged indications of a propensity for violence.
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That misconduct case does not establish any connection between Pesina and the officers who shot Martz. It is relevant as documented contemporaneous litigation and misconduct involving the same police department, but should not be attributed to Martz's unidentified shooting officers unless later records establish that connection.

SOURCE LINKS :

https://patch.com/california/murrieta/menifee-police-kill-armed-man-after-suicide-threat-officer-involved-shooting
https://myvalleynews.com/blog/2025/08/21/reportedly-armed-man-fatally-shot/
https://mynewsla.com/crime/2025/08/21/menifee-man-killed-in-officer-involved-shooting/
https://canyonlakeinsider.com/menifee-man-fatally-shot-in-officer-involved-shooting/
https://menifeepolice.org/transparency-copy/
https://menifee247.com/2026/02/lawsuits-seek-damages-for-sexual-assault-accuse-pd-of-negligence.html