Unarmed black man Ezell Ford fatally shot by police
According to family members, a 25-year-old man was complying with police orders when he was fatally shot by LAPD officers in the Florence neighborhood South Los Angeles.
Officers responded to a report of a possible officer-involved shooting at the intersection of West 65th Street and South Broadway late Monday evening.
Patrol officers had “conducted an investigative stop” in the 200 block of 65th Street, and “during the stop a struggle ensued” and police opened fire, an LAPD news release issued midmorning Tuesday stated.
The man was transported to a hospital where he underwent surgery, according to Officer Sara Faden, spokeswoman for the LAPD. He later succumbed to his injuries, police confirmed.
Officers sustained minor scrapes during the altercation and did not require hospitalization, Imaizumi had said very early Tuesday. The news release stated no officers were injured.
Police were being tight-lipped with details about the incident because of a “gathering” at the scene of the shooting, Imaizumi said.
It was unknown if the “suspect” had any gang affiliations, police said in the news release.
Family members of the victim were interviewed on camera at the scene of the shooting. A man who did not give his name identified himself as the victim’s cousin, said he was around the corner when the altercation first occurred.
“They laid him out and for whatever reason, they shot him in the back, knowing mentally, he has complications. Every officer in this area, from the Newton Division, knows that — that this child has mental problems,” the man told KTLA.
“The excessive force … there was no purpose for it. The multiple shootings in the back while he’s laying down? No. Then when the mom comes, they don’t try to console her … they pull the billy clubs out.”
The shooting, which came just two days after the shooting death of Michael Brown, 18, of Ferguson, Missouri, is under investigation. Like the death of Michael Brown, outraged citizens took to social media spreading the story under the hashtag #EzellFord.
Civil rights leaders called for a meeting with LAPD Chief Charlie Beck over Ford’s shooting. Anyone with information was asked to call the LAPD’s Force Investigation Division at 213-486-5230.
Black lives DO matter.
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