I don’t buy
it. The victim wasn’t a robbery suspect. He was homeless drunk named “Africa” engaged
in a sidewalk brawl with another homeless drunk. Africa had spent the past ten
years in a mental asylum and lived on the street in a makeshift pup tent. The
cops had warned him for several days that they intended to take down the tent.
Four cops had
this guy on the ground, face down, and he took one of their guns? Meaning with
a free hand and not suffering any effect from a 40,000 volt taser, none of the
four cops had control of the victim’s hand’s, he took a pistol out of the cop’s
holsters and got it into his own hand?
And the only way to handle this was, at a range of no more than three
feet, to shoot the guy seven times? Three of the four cops fired into the guy.
Central Area Officer Involved Shooting
Los Angeles:
Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Central Area officers and Safer City
Initiative officers attempted to detain a robbery suspect in the 500 Block of
San Pedro Street, and an Officer Involved Shooting occurred.
At approximately noon today, a private citizen placed a
9-1-1 emergency call to report a robbery near 545 South San Pedro Street in
downtown Los Angeles. LAPD Communications Division subsequently dispatched
Central Area officers to the location who located the suspect and attempted to
contact him. After making contact, however, the suspect began fighting and
physically resisting the officer’s attempts to take him into custody. The
officers attempted to use a TASER to subdue him but the suspect continued to
fight and resist the officers and fell to the ground. While on the ground, the
suspect and officers struggled over one of the officer's handguns and then an
officer-involved shooting occurred. Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics
responded and pronounced the suspect deceased at the scene. LAFD paramedics
then transported the suspect's body to the Los Angeles County Coroner's
Officer. Two of the responding officers involved in the incident suffered minor
injuries and were treated and released.
As in all officer-involved shootings, LAPD's specialized
Force Investigative Division (FID) personnel responded to preserve and collect
evidence and interview witnesses to the incident. Portions of the incident
captured on video from various sources will be reviewed and analyzed as part of
the ongoing use of force investigation. FID's comprehensive investigation will
be conducted in coordination with the LAPD's Office of Inspector General and
presented to the Board of Police Commissioners to determine whether the use of
deadly force was consistent with Department policies and procedures.
Additionally, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Justice System
Integrity Division will conduct a comprehensive review of the facts of the
officer-involved shooting.
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