Marcus Smith |
INGLEWOOD - Police in Inglewood are the subject of scrutiny once again after a man was fatally shot during an altercation that also left one officer wounded.
The incident happened around 12:45 a.m. Sunday when officers responded to a disturbance call in the 800 block of Osage Avenue.
Four officers encountered a suspect with a semiautomatic handgun there, and three opened fire, Inglewood police Lt. Mike McBride said.
The identity of the suspect who was fatally shot by police, has been confirmed by the Los Angeles County coroner's office -- and a woman believed to be the man's fiancee -- as Marcus Smith, 31, of Compton.
Kalonna LaCount, 30, identified herself as Smith's fiancee. According to LaCount, she and Smith were attending a birthday party when police showed up and broke the party up.
LaCount says that when she and her fiance were walking down a stairway together, Smith slipped. According to LaCount, she watched Smith's body jerk as police fired guns at him.
"He had his hands in the air," LaCount said. "The more he stumbled, the more they shot."
LaCount didn't think Smith was carrying or brandishing a weapon, and wasn't sure if he even owned one.
"Witnesses said in some media reports he was unarmed but based on our witness statements and physical evidence, we're confident he was in fact armed," McBride said.
Additionally, a 17-year-old boy may have broken his arm as police tried to calm the distraught family of the fatally wounded man.
An officer was wounded in the leg and was taken to a local hospital. He was said to be in stable condition.
It's believed the bullet that struck him may have come from a fellow officer, according to Inglewood Police.
Details of how the shooting occurred were still being investigated.
Officers recovered a semi-automatic handgun at the scene. The identity of the gun's owner has not been confirmed.
Inglewood police and the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office are handling the investigation.
All four officers were put on administrative leave, as is routine in officer-involved shootings, McBride said.
The shooting is the latest to bring criticism to the department.
In March, the U.S. Department of Justice began reviewing tactics and procedures used by Inglewood police after several officer-involved shootings that left four dead.
Among them were the August killing of a homeless man who police say was shot after he reached for a toy gun stashed in his waistband.
The department pledged to fully cooperate with the federal investigation.
Additionally, at the request of the city, the Los Angeles County Office of Independent Review, which monitors the L.A. County Sheriff's Department, is looking into the tactics of Inglewood police.
In November 2008, the department began sending its officers to a mandatory 120-hour course to improve decision making and tactical responses, with an extra 20 hours required for all personnel above the rank of sergeant, according to McBride. All officers were expected to complete the course by this month.
The incident happened around 12:45 a.m. Sunday when officers responded to a disturbance call in the 800 block of Osage Avenue.
Four officers encountered a suspect with a semiautomatic handgun there, and three opened fire, Inglewood police Lt. Mike McBride said.
The identity of the suspect who was fatally shot by police, has been confirmed by the Los Angeles County coroner's office -- and a woman believed to be the man's fiancee -- as Marcus Smith, 31, of Compton.
Kalonna LaCount, 30, identified herself as Smith's fiancee. According to LaCount, she and Smith were attending a birthday party when police showed up and broke the party up.
LaCount says that when she and her fiance were walking down a stairway together, Smith slipped. According to LaCount, she watched Smith's body jerk as police fired guns at him.
"He had his hands in the air," LaCount said. "The more he stumbled, the more they shot."
LaCount didn't think Smith was carrying or brandishing a weapon, and wasn't sure if he even owned one.
"Witnesses said in some media reports he was unarmed but based on our witness statements and physical evidence, we're confident he was in fact armed," McBride said.
Additionally, a 17-year-old boy may have broken his arm as police tried to calm the distraught family of the fatally wounded man.
An officer was wounded in the leg and was taken to a local hospital. He was said to be in stable condition.
It's believed the bullet that struck him may have come from a fellow officer, according to Inglewood Police.
Details of how the shooting occurred were still being investigated.
Officers recovered a semi-automatic handgun at the scene. The identity of the gun's owner has not been confirmed.
Inglewood police and the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office are handling the investigation.
All four officers were put on administrative leave, as is routine in officer-involved shootings, McBride said.
The shooting is the latest to bring criticism to the department.
In March, the U.S. Department of Justice began reviewing tactics and procedures used by Inglewood police after several officer-involved shootings that left four dead.
Among them were the August killing of a homeless man who police say was shot after he reached for a toy gun stashed in his waistband.
The department pledged to fully cooperate with the federal investigation.
Additionally, at the request of the city, the Los Angeles County Office of Independent Review, which monitors the L.A. County Sheriff's Department, is looking into the tactics of Inglewood police.
In November 2008, the department began sending its officers to a mandatory 120-hour course to improve decision making and tactical responses, with an extra 20 hours required for all personnel above the rank of sergeant, according to McBride. All officers were expected to complete the course by this month.
