The Federal Bureau of Investigation said they will re-examine the recent acquittal of two former Fullerton police officers charged with the death of mentally ill homeless man Kelly Thomas, Reuters reported.
"In 2011, the FBI opened an investigation to determine if Mr. Thomas' civil rights were violated during an altercation with Fullerton police officers," FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said in a written statement, according to Reuters.
After an Orange County Superior Court jury cleared ex-Fullerton officers Manuel Ramos, 39, and Jay Cicinelli, 41, of beating Thomas to death, the FBI announced they will look into the fatal beating which has ignited street protests in Fullerton, according to Reuters.
"With the conclusion of the state court trial, investigators will examine the evidence and testimony to determine if further investigation is warranted at the federal level," Eimiller said, Reuters reported.
The violent beating of Thomas was caught on a surveillance camera at the bus depot where the officers initially approached him in July of 2011 to ask questions in regards to a report about cars being vandalized, according to Reuters.
The broadcast of the video, which shows police officers putting on gloves and yelling at Thomas, caused outrage and a political upheaval throughout the Fullerton area only 30 miles southeast of Los Angeles, Reuters reported.
Ron Thomas, the victim's father, said the jury's decision to acquit the officers of all charges is "horrible," adding it is too early to get his hopes up about the FBI's re-investigation of the case, according to Reuters.
"I don't feel excited. I'm completely numb right now. I'm just drained after two and a half years of this fight. And they just walk away without even excessive force charges? This shouldn't have happened. Where did it go wrong?" Thomas said after the verdict was announced, according to Reuters.
The victim's father also sued the city of Fullerton and held a press conference for Tuesday afternoon, Reuters reported.
The city of Fullerton negotiated a $1 million settlement to the victim's mother for claims she could have brought forward during the case of her sons death, according to Reuters
Prosecutors in the case said Ramos and Cicinelli turned a "routine law enforcement encounter" into an "unnecessary and savage beating that cost the unarmed homeless man his life," though defense lawyers stated Thomas was dangerous, Reuters reported.
The acting chief of the Fullerton Police Department in 2012, a year after the incident occurred, announced shortly after Thomas' death that he had not committed any wrong doing in regards to the confrontation and cleared him of any blame in the incident which took his life, according to Reuters.
