Public vigil for Victor Perez planned for April – 1 year after Pocatello teen was shot and killed by police

POCATELLO – The lawyers representing the family of a Pocatello boy who was shot by police will host a vigil to honor his life one year later.

The Vigil Honoring Victor Perez will take place on Saturday, April 4, which is one day before the anniversary of the day Perez was shot and killed by Pocatello police officers. It will begin at 11 a.m. at the Perez family home, 703 N. Harrison Ave, the location where he Perez was shot.

“The vigil will bring together family, community members and counsel for a time of reflection, prayer, remembrance and support. Attendees will be invited to gather in solidarity, hear from speakers close to the case and the family, observe a moment of silence, and place flowers or candles at the memorial,” the release reads.

On April 5, 2025, four Pocatello Police officers were dispatched to a report of a disturbance involving a man who was “brandishing” a knife. The responding officers discharged their weapons at Perez less than 20 seconds after arriving on the scene, when he stood up and moved toward them while holding a knife.

The officers, who were separated from Perez by a fence, shot him 12 times, and one of the officers fired a less-lethal beanbag round from a shotgun. Perez, who was 17 years old and had autism and cerebral palsy, died a week later at Portneuf Medical Center after doctors amputated his leg, and later declared him clinically brain dead.

“In the year since, his family has continued to live with the profound loss of his presence in their daily lives,” the release reads.

Perez’s family is being represented by the attorneys of Burris, Nisenbaum, Curry & Lacy (BNCL), a national civil rights law firm based out of San Francisco.

Jennifer Call, of Snake River Criminal Defense, PLLC, is a criminal defense and civil rights attorney who is serving as local counsel to BNCL. The release says, “she has more than a decade of experience in Idaho’s criminal justice system and has built a reputation for thoughtful, strategic advocacy.”

Call spoke with EastIdahoNews.com and expanded on the experience Luis Alicea, Perez’s grandfather, has had in the year since Perez’s death.

“(Alicea) still lives in that house and looks out in his backyard and remembers what happened every day,” Call said.

The city of Pocatello has previously denied commenting on the incident, citing pending litigation.

EastIdahoNews.com reached out to the city again for comment, but did not receive a response. This article will be updated if comment is received.

John Burris is described as a “nationally recognized civil rights attorney with more than four decades of experience representing victims and families in police misconduct and excessive force cases,” in the release. BNCL has represented a number of high-profile clients, including Rodney King, Tupac Shakur and the family of Oscar Grant.

James Cook, an attorney with BNCL, told EastIdahoNews.com that the lawsuit is at the “very beginning” of the discovery phase, where counsel seeks information related to the case.

“In the discovery phases, we send out written requests back and forth, take depositions,” Cook said. “(Depositions) might not happen for another year, … like I said, we’re at the very, very beginning.”

Call said that people who attend the vigil will stand in the residence’s backyard, as well as in the alleyway behind the house.

“The vigil is intended not only to honor Victor’s life, but also to show the Perez family that the community has not forgotten him and continues to stand with them,” the release reads.