Los Angeles Sheriff has ‘grave concerns’ about the killing of a man by lawmakers

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Faced with a lawsuit and video from multiple angles of lawmakers shooting a man with a knife, Los Angeles Sheriff Alex Villanova said Friday night he had “serious concerns” about the death.

David Ordaz Jr. was shot dead by MPs on March 14 outside his family home in East Los Angeles. His family posted a mobile video of the incident when they announced their lawsuit against Los Angeles County and four lawmakers on Thursday.

Body camera footage from the deputy included the shooting of David Ordaz Jr., the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

The lawsuit says Ordaz was “not in the right mind” when his sister called 911 to report that he possessed an “ordinary kitchen knife” and was taking methamphetamine and had a suicidal desire. The lawsuit said lawmakers “used unjustified force” to cause the 34-year-old’s death.

She claims wrongful death and a civil rights violation in California, which protects people targeted with violence as a result of a “medical condition.”

She added that four deputies “managed, maintained, operated, controlled and supervised” the accident.

On Friday, the Los Angeles Police Department released the vice president’s camera video of the incident, and Villanueva said one of the law enforcement officers involved had been relieved of duty.

“I want to make it very clear that I have deep concerns about the shooting of the MP involved,” Sharif said.

The shooting is being investigated internally and by the public prosecutor. The mayor said he will share the findings of the investigation with the FBI.

The House of Representatives, the union of Los Angeles mayors, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Saturday.

The confrontation began when Hilda Pedrosa called 911 and asked “if you could guide me on what I can do to help” her brother, according to Sheriff’s video.

Gabriela Hernandez said in a statement Friday that her brother “has reached an emotional point of vulnerability. Out of desperation, we called 911.”

According to the sheriff’s video, the deputies were dispatched with a mental assessment team. Before the shooting, deputies at the scene again requested the mental assessment team, according to Al-Sharif’s video.

The deputies pushed Ordaz out of a parked car and tried to persuade him to drop the knife. On one occasion, a deputy suggested firing less-lethal projectiles, and one of them opened fire, apparently with a “detonator bag,” according to the mayor’s video.

After being beaten, Ordaz is seen in Sharif’s video stumbling towards the deputies and family members. The shot was fired and he can be seen falling to the ground in a fetal position, with his back to the officers.

The shooting continued after Ordaz was on the ground, and at least 12 shots were fired in total, according to a county investigative judge’s report provided by the family’s legal representative, law firm Alan Ahdut.

The lawsuit said Ordaz “was hit by non-lethal bullets, turned around to escape to the sidewalk and did not run at the sheriff’s deputies. In fact, the coroner’s report shows that all but two of the bullets hit him in the back.”

Villanueva has been criticized for earlier comments after the killing of civilians by lawmakers and for his response to decades of reports of lawmakers forming law enforcement gangs.

It is not clear why the administration withheld the video of the March incident until Friday. It described the release as part of the “Promise of Transparency” programme.

“Our thoughts are with his family and loved ones,” Villanueva said in his statement on Friday.

He also said Ordaz was “under the influence of drugs and wanted to commit suicide by the policeman”.

The department said Ordaz was convicted of drug and DUI possession charges.

His daughter, Emily Ordaz, said in a statement Friday: “I wish I could tell him what a great dad he was. I wish I could tell him we’re all human, that it’s OK to fight depression and anxiety, that it’s OK to struggle with addiction.”

“Unfortunately, law enforcement doesn’t see it the way I do,” she said. “Instead, they used my father’s mental illness against him, and made it look like he deserved to be killed.”

Dennis Romero

Dennis Romero writes for Los Angeles-based NBC News.

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