The California Department of Justice is investigating an incident in which a police officer was seen on video shooting a man after a fight in the middle of the roadway Sunday.
On Monday evening, the California Highway Patrol said for the first time that the man involved in the incident, who died after the shooting, used a Taser on the officer during the struggle. The officer “feared for his safety” when he shot the man, the CHP said.
CHP says the incident began with reports of a man walking on the highway Sunday around 3:15 p.m. on westbound 105 near Wilmington Avenue. Officers found the man crossing the westbound lanes while wearing headphones and talking on the phone.
A police officer arrived on scene at 3:27 p.m. and attempted to convince the pedestrian to move out of the traffic lanes, but he refused, according to the new CHP release. Officers stopped traffic while one officer approached the man directly in the lanes of the highway.
Videos posted on social media show the police officer and the man struggling on the ground in the middle of the tracks. The video then shows the officer drawing his gun and shooting the man multiple times.
According to the CHP statement: “During the struggle, the pedestrian was able to access a Taser he had in his possession, activated the weapon and used the Taser against the officer. Following the use of the weapon by the pedestrian against the police officer, and fearing for his safety, the police officer fired his service weapon, hitting the pedestrian. »
The pedestrian later died in hospital. Westbound Highway 105 was closed for hours while authorities investigated.
The officer has been placed on administrative leave per standard department policy while the shooting is investigated by the state Department of Justice.
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