[VIDEO] Homeless Man Shot And Killed By Los Angeles Police In Broad Daylight

In disturbing footage posted on Facebook by Anthony Blackburn, who witnessed the incident, a group of police officers can be seen in a scuffle with two people near what appears to be makeshift tents and sleeping pallets on the sidewalk.

One woman is arrested by two officers after she picks up a baton, while another man is forced to the ground by a group of four officers. As he lies on the ground, he continues to struggle with police and one officer can be heard saying, "Drop the gun, drop the gun."

Moments later, five gunshots can be heard in the footage. According to the Associated Press, the man was shot at close range after being tasered, after which the police officers can be seen moving away from the man slowly with their guns still raised.

mashable.com

The Los Angeles Police Department said it had received a call at about noon on Sunday about a robbery inside a tent in the Skid Row section of downtown. When the officers arrived, they found the suspect, who was uncooperative and tried to fight them, Sergeant Montgomery said.

nytimes.com

The Los Angeles Police Department said the robbery suspect began fighting the officers and resisting arrest. At one point an officer punches the man to the ground. The officers attempted to use a taser, but the suspect continued fighting, according to a statement released by the LAPD. During the altercation, the man and the officers struggled over one of the officer’s handguns. “Drop the gun,” officers shout several times with their own guns drawn. About five shots can be heard on the video.

buzzfeed.com

“While on the ground and struggling with the officers, the man forcibly grabbed one of the officer’s holstered pistols, resulting in an officer-involved shooting,” Beck said during an afternoon press conference on Monday. Beck said the slide on the gun had been “partially engaged”, which he said is “indicative of a struggle over a weapon”.

“I don’t know that I’d have done anything differently,” Beck told reporters. He added: “Had the individual not grabbed the officer’s pistol, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

theguardian.com

Witnesses told the Los Angeles Times that the man had been sleeping among the bags and trash for about four months. One woman who told Fox 11 News that she witnessed the shooting said, "He didn't have no weapon. They could have just wrestled him down."

mashable.com

Anthony Blackburn, the man who recorded the shooting, told CNN that he didn’t see the homeless person reaching out for an officer’s gun, contradicting the police’s version of events. “Why didn’t they simply “shoot the man in the leg?” Blackburn said. “He’s already on the ground.”

buzzfeed.com

The man taking the video can be heard swearing as he records it. After the shooting, he can be heard saying. "Ain't nobody got no [obscenity] gun. I'm gonna record this [obscenity]... They just shot that man right here, man, they just shot that [obscenity] man right here, yeah."

bbc.com

The man was killed in a part of downtown Los Angeles known for violence and a large number of homeless people, who are allowed to pitch tents in the area between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m.

Witnesses who knew the man told a local television station that he was homeless and mentally unstable. “He had a lot of mental issues,” Tonya Edwards said in an interview with KTLA. Of the area, she said, “It’s like a melting pot for everybody that needs help.”

nytimes.com

Steve Soboroff, President of the Commission, said in a tweet there would be "thorough investigations" by the police department and its Inspector General "proceeding simultaneously."

mashable.com