Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia on Thursday said prosecutors should “absolutely” file criminal charges against a Long Beach Unified school safety officer accused of fatally shooting an 18-year-old woman.

Mona Rodriguez, a young mother who had just been involved in a fight with a 15-year-old girl, was riding in a car driving away from the scene near Millikan High School on Sept. 27 when School Safety Officer Eddie F. Gonzalez fired into the moving car as it sped past him, according to police and video from the incident.

On Twitter Thursday, Garcia praised the LBUSD’s decision to fire Gonzalez. He has previously called Rodriguez’s death “horrific and tragic,” but his call for criminal charges marks an escalation.

Mona Rodriguez. Courtesy her family.

Long Beach police say they’re still investigating and no decision has been made whether Gonzalez will be charged with a crime. That call will be up to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office.

Long Beach homicide detectives are sharing evidence as they gather it with the District Attorney’s office, LBPD spokesman Richard Mejia said.

Police have not arrested Gonzalez, waiting instead on a decision from the District Attorney’s office, according to the department.

“Homicide detectives are in regular communication with the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office and are providing evidence from the ongoing investigation to them for filing consideration,” police said in a statement.

Long Beach Unified fires school safety officer who fatally shot 18-year-old woman

Jeremiah Dobruck is executive editor of the Long Beach Post where he oversees all day-to-day newsroom operations. In his time working as a journalist in Long Beach, he’s won numerous awards for his investigative reporting and editing. Before coming to the Post in 2018, he wrote for publications including the Press-Telegram, Orange County Register and Los Angeles Times. Reach him at [email protected] or @jeremiahdobruck on Twitter.