9 episodes

From Oscar and Emmy Award winning documentarian, Kary Antholis, Night Raid is a story about the tragic death of a Pomona SWAT officer … and the story of the man accused of killing him.
 
Ask any public defender in the LA criminal courts to name the most complicated and heart-wrenching case in the past decade and almost everyone will tell you it’s The People vs. David Martinez. Ask the prosecutors and they’ll admit the case is tragic. But complicated? No. They say it’s murder plain and simple.
 
There is no dispute that Officer Shaun Diamond was a man of good character whose death is horrific … or that David Martinez was affiliated with a motorcycle club that had conflicts with law enforcement. But Night Raid avoids a rush to judgment and considers all aspects of a very murky case. And in the process explores our own prejudices and preconceptions about cause and effect, guilt and innocence … even punishment and redemption. 
 
There are no videos of the raid and David Martinez isn’t an ACLU poster boy. He’s a family man with vices that may have contributed to the shotgun blast that killed Diamond on the night of October 28, 2014. In the eight episodes of Night Raid, we unravel the compelling story of The People vs. David Martinez - not just the events of David’s two trials but the reasons for the SWAT raid and the planning behind it, the relationship between David and the Mongols Motorcycle Club, and how the intertwined narratives of this story reflect larger issues in our judicial system. The series takes an intimate look at Diamond’s death through unprecedented access to search warrant materials and recordings of detective interviews with David’s family and other Pomona SWAT officers.

Executive Producer — Kary Antholis
Host, Producer, Writer — Molly Miller

Night Raid is a production of Crime Story Media and eOne Entertainment. The podcast debuts on LAist 89.3 on Saturday May 6 at 2pm with a rebroadcast on Sunday May 7 at 7pm. Each episode of the eight part Night Raid special series will air Saturday’s at 2pm and rebroadcast Sunday at 7pm. The first episode of the podcast will be released on all podcast players after the second LAist broadcast on May 7, with new episodes airing each Sunday thereafter.
 
The eight episode Night Raid series will conclude its run on the weekend of June 24.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Night Raid Crime Story Media

    • True Crime
    • 4.4 • 32 Ratings

From Oscar and Emmy Award winning documentarian, Kary Antholis, Night Raid is a story about the tragic death of a Pomona SWAT officer … and the story of the man accused of killing him.
 
Ask any public defender in the LA criminal courts to name the most complicated and heart-wrenching case in the past decade and almost everyone will tell you it’s The People vs. David Martinez. Ask the prosecutors and they’ll admit the case is tragic. But complicated? No. They say it’s murder plain and simple.
 
There is no dispute that Officer Shaun Diamond was a man of good character whose death is horrific … or that David Martinez was affiliated with a motorcycle club that had conflicts with law enforcement. But Night Raid avoids a rush to judgment and considers all aspects of a very murky case. And in the process explores our own prejudices and preconceptions about cause and effect, guilt and innocence … even punishment and redemption. 
 
There are no videos of the raid and David Martinez isn’t an ACLU poster boy. He’s a family man with vices that may have contributed to the shotgun blast that killed Diamond on the night of October 28, 2014. In the eight episodes of Night Raid, we unravel the compelling story of The People vs. David Martinez - not just the events of David’s two trials but the reasons for the SWAT raid and the planning behind it, the relationship between David and the Mongols Motorcycle Club, and how the intertwined narratives of this story reflect larger issues in our judicial system. The series takes an intimate look at Diamond’s death through unprecedented access to search warrant materials and recordings of detective interviews with David’s family and other Pomona SWAT officers.

Executive Producer — Kary Antholis
Host, Producer, Writer — Molly Miller

Night Raid is a production of Crime Story Media and eOne Entertainment. The podcast debuts on LAist 89.3 on Saturday May 6 at 2pm with a rebroadcast on Sunday May 7 at 7pm. Each episode of the eight part Night Raid special series will air Saturday’s at 2pm and rebroadcast Sunday at 7pm. The first episode of the podcast will be released on all podcast players after the second LAist broadcast on May 7, with new episodes airing each Sunday thereafter.
 
The eight episode Night Raid series will conclude its run on the weekend of June 24.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    8. The Aftermath

    8. The Aftermath

    In this episode of Night Raid, we explore how the eight and a half year legal process has affected both the Martinez and the Diamond families, through interviews with David Martinez and his attorney, Brady Sullivan, and a reenactment of the powerful victim impact statements delivered by Shaun Diamond’s daughter Margo, and others affected by his killing. And finally, a major development in this story is expected to occur sometime in the early Summer of 2023, and we plan to be on hand when it happens.
    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 51 min
    7. The Outcome

    7. The Outcome

    The jury in The People vs. David Martinez gets the case and takes five days to reach a verdict. We hear the arguments and personal drama that went on behind closed doors through interviews with two of the jurors. After learning the jury’s decision, we explore the aftermath of that trial.
    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 51 min
    6. The Night Of

    6. The Night Of

    We’ve heard from the prosecution and defense. Now, David Martinez himself takes the stand. We reënact  David’s testimony, starting with his account of the night of the raid. David explains in detail what he claims he heard and saw in the seconds before his door was breached by the SWAT team and why he fired his gun. Then David Martinez faces a razor-sharp cross examination by Deputy DA Michael Blake.
    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 51 min
    5. 30 Seconds in the Dark

    5. 30 Seconds in the Dark

    The last episode brought listeners the prosecutors case against David Martinez, accused of killing Pomona police officer Shaun Diamond. This time, defense attorney Brady Sullivan takes the lectern and presents a drastically different narrative: the story of a botched SWAT raid that resulted in a chaotic scene in which David shot in self-defense, thinking the officers were Mongols or other hostile intruders. In this episode we break down the most critical moments of the raid, trying to figure out what David saw and heard in the dark. We illuminate the case for David’s acquittal through testimony reënactment, recordings of detective interviews, a shocking 911 call, and an interview with Thor Eells, executive director of the National Tactical Officers Association.
    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 51 min
    4. The Case Against David Martinez

    4. The Case Against David Martinez

    In 2019, the trial of David Martinez commenced in Courtroom 105 of the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in downtown LA. The prosecution sought to portray David as a dangerous gang member - a cold blooded killer who saw an opportunity to kill a cop and took his shot. In this episode we follow the deputy district attorneys’ argument through testimony reenactments and recordings of detective interviews, illustrating the impact of Shaun Diamond’s death on his fellow Pomona police officers. The episode offers evidence presented by the prosecution that calls into question David’s sobriety at the time of the shooting, as well as testimony that suggests that David heard the police announce themselves and saw them on the porch when he fired his weapon.
    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 51 min
    3. The Raid

    3. The Raid

    The 2014 SWAT raid on the Martinez home, which left a Pomona police officer dead, was part of a multi-jurisdictional operation targeting members of the Mongols Motorcycle Club. So what was David Martinez’s relationship with the Mongols, and how did that relationship lead to a raid on his family home in San Gabriel? In this episode we zoom out from the night of the raid to see a bigger picture that includes the Mongols’ long history with the ATF and David’s fraught history with them. We then explore the SWAT raid itself with police militarization expert Radley Balko, plus the search warrant affidavit, police operations reports, and shocking interviews with detectives after the raid.
    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 51 min

Customer Reviews

4.4 out of 5
32 Ratings

32 Ratings

SouthTaylor ,

Good, but dragged out

This is a great podcast, very in depth and well researched. Docking 1 star because they could have fit the whole thing in I think 1 episode less and they drag it out a bit.

Still a great series.

Jeana Harris ,

Compelling and well written

A compelling story made even better by the format, excellent writing, and thorough research. This podcast provides us with plenty of context to understand the very tragic and complex case from all angles. The real-life audio clips and dramatized scenes from court transcripts made it feel very immersive. Fantastic writing and a very high production value. I was hooked and could not wait to listen to the next episode.

MGE4321 ,

Too biased.

Disappointed in how biased the podcast was. It was easy to tell there was an anti police angle.

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