Fatal Police Shooting of Homeless Man in Downtown LA Caught on Tape
Posted to Facebook, where the police commission president saw it. An officer is heard yelling drop the gun but it's unclear if the man had one.
Police in Los Angeles were responding to a robbery call in downtown Los Angeles when they approached a homeless man named Africa and ordered him to remove his tent—the homeless are allowed to have tents in certain areas during the evening and early morning.
Video posted to Facebook caught part of the interaction with Africa and another homeless man, who picks up a dropped baton at some point. A struggle with Africa ends with police firing several shots, killing Africa. Police won't say how many shots were fired or how many police officers were involved, both of which can be more or less counted on the video (five shots, four cops). One of the officers yells "drop the gun" before the shots are fired.
Police say no officer was injured during the altercation. Police Commission President Steve Soboroff says he felt the adrenaline when he watched the video, which he first saw on social media, and that the police investigation would center around whether Africa did, indeed, take control of one of the officer's weapons before he was shot. What kind of other training the video might spur remains to be seen.
