Officers from LAPD’s Wilshire Division shot a suspect early Thursday morning after the suspect allegedly fought with the officers when they tried to arrest him. A violent physical altercation ensued when the officers tried to subdue the suspect and one of the officer’s tasers was allegedly used by the suspect on the officer.
According to the LAPD Blog:
The violent struggle continued and the suspect at some point was able to gain control of the Taser and use it, injuring one of the officers’ in the leg. The tased officer alerted the partner officer who drew their weapon resulting in an officer involved shooting.
Officers were responding to reports of a man using a skateboard to break windows of cars in the Wilshire/La Brea area around 8:40a Thursday. The incident took place on Sycamore Avenue between 8th and 9th Streets.
According to the LA Times:
When the officers arrived, [LAPD Cmdr. Andrew] Smith said, they saw a man matching the description riding a skateboard down Sycamore. The officers began to follow him in their car.
At some point, the man fell or jumped off his skateboard, Smith said. The officers got out of their car and tried to detain him but he did not cooperate with their commands, he said.
During the struggle, one of the officers used a Taser on the man, directly pressing it against his body, Smith said. The Taser didn’t appear to have any effect, he said, and the officers continued to scuffle with the man.
At some point, Smith said, the man grabbed the Taser from the officer and used it on the officer’s leg. The officer’s partner then opened fire, striking the man in the upper body.
The investigation is on-going.
READ MORE
LA Times – LAPD: Man Shot by Police Grabbed Officer’s Taser During Struggle
LAPD Blog – Officer Involved Shooting in Wilshire
Streets closed near 8th/9th and Sycamore after #LAPD shooting in Mid-Wilshire. pic.twitter.com/c9MBDbrVTV
— Kate Mather (@katemather) July 9, 2015
