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LAPD shooting on LA skid row captures nation’s attention (Video)

While the facts surrounding the incident may not be reminiscent of other famous shootings that have littered the newspapers in recent months, one can’t help but cringe when watching the footage of the violence captured on cell phone video. The video, later posted to Facebook, was shot in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday where three officers were involved in a fatal shooting. While the details are still beginning to unfold, the following facts are being pieced together.

About the Shooting Victim

The man in the midst of the shooting on Sunday was known on the street as “Africa.” LA Times reports that Union Rescue Mission President Andy Bales was familiar with Africa, as he helped to clean up the mission on a daily basis. While his efforts in helping to tidy up the mission were valiant, noting that he actually helped employees clean up every day, Bales also indicated that Africa was known to have acted out on occasion.

The victim is believed to be an African immigrant and his family members are believed to reside overseas. By Yahoo media reports, they tried to get him to come back home, although unsuccessfully. Africa made his present home on the streets of skid row. Before that, he had been residing at a mental health facility for a long stretch of time. Bales remembers one particular incident when Africa came out of his tent and began knocking items out of some unsuspecting passer-by’s hands. This type of behavior can put the officers policing the neighborhood in an awkward position to ensure the public’s safety.

The Los Angeles area has one of the largest homeless sectors in the nation, with over 3,500 individuals living on skid row. This includes approximately 1,500 who sleep in encampments along the sidewalks of the city. It’s estimated that 25 percent of the homeless individuals living on the streets suffer from mental illness. According to the New York Times, Jerry Jones, the executive director of the National Coalition for the Homeless said, “There’s no other part of the country with that level of concentrated homelessness.”

What Does the Video Reveal?

Reuters reported on the video that showcased events as they unraveled, and several incidents are shown in the footage. For instance, a man is shown to spin around with his arms stretched outward. Police officers are seen surrounding the victim. The man who has been identified as Africa is then thrown to the ground. One of the officers drops his night stick in the video and is heard voicing his concern saying, “Get the stick, get the stick!” A woman behind the police officer is seen picking up the night stick. Officers then push the woman to the ground.

Four other officers surround the victim on the ground and ask him three times to drop the gun. Five shots clearly ring out. While the police confrontation with the victim is precise, the footage isn’t exactly clear when it comes to him going for the officer’s revolver. Investigators are hoping that other additional video of the incident can shed more light on the situation, especially when it comes to the intricate details of the officers shooting and victim.

Was the Use of Force Warranted?

Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners, Steve Soboroff, indicated in an interview how critical the use of force can be in a situation such as this, and how important that evidence would be in the investigation as to whether the police had been justified in the way they acted. Whether the victim actually grabbed for the gun has yet to be determined, but if it was, it would justify the LAPD’s actions for shooting the victim. Adding into the mix is how the chaotic scene unfolded, and the heightened sense of alarm given the victim’s behavior and location of the accident.

According to the New York Times, Soboroff went on to say that, “There’s a tendency to try to group this with the incidents in Ferguson and the incidents in New York. We are not the same police force, we don’t have the same procedure, and these cases were not similar. It’s really important for every one of us — the citizenry, law enforcement — not to jump to foregone conclusions.”

Police Procedures in Dealing with the Mentally Ill

Defusing a situation such as this is important to keeping the officers and public safe. However, some are asking if there should be different police procedures when dealing with the mentally ill after watching the violent events unfold on the video. With the number of mentally ill individuals increasing in numbers across the Nation, it may be critical to devise a plan without such deadly force. SMART is a System-wide Mental Assessment Response Team that is comprised of social workers trained to help individuals suspected of mental illness. Having them look into the recent factors in Los Angeles and implement a plan for incidents like this that have escalated to heightened levels could make a difference between life and death.

In the meantime, Mayor Eric Garcetti spoke out and asked for calm, according to the LA Times and said, “The shooting death of a homeless man by Los Angeles police officers happened in a fast-moving situation and asked the public to withhold judgment until an investigation is completed.”

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