Woman with knife killed by LAPD
Two officers shoot her after a confrontation near downtown; no one else was injured. Video footage is set to be examined.
Los Angeles police fatally shot a woman armed with a knife Sunday following a confrontation near downtown, authorities said.
Police received a call about 9:30 a.m. about an unruly woman with a knife at the intersection of East 22nd and South San Pedro streets, just south of the 10 Freeway, said Sgt. Frank Preciado.
The two responding officers confronted the woman, who was armed with a knife with an 8-inch blade, he said. At some point, the officers fired their weapons.
The woman was taken to a hospital, where she died, Preciado said. She has not been identified. No one else was injured. The two officers, who have not been identified, were described as a “training officer” and a “probationary officer.”
“Our understanding is that both officers discharged their weapons,” Preciado said. The officers were wearing body cameras, and the video footage from those cameras will be downloaded and examined as part of the investigation.
Video footage taken from a security camera in the area also will be examined, he said.
Sunday’s incident was the third fatal LAPD officerinvolved shooting in September. Earlier this month, police shot and killed two gunmen, including one who authorities said killed a woman, in two separate incidents.
LAPD officers have shot 31 people this year, 17 of whom were killed.
The department began using chest-mounted body cameras last month, making Los Angeles the largest U.S. city to use the devices on a wide scale.
The use of body cameras by officers has drawn significant attention in recent months amid a heated national debate about policing. Advocates say that the cameras will help bring clarity to controversial officer-civilian encounters, guard against officer misconduct and help clear those falsely accused of wrongdoing.
But concerns linger over the LAPD’s planned use of the technology, particularly about who will get to see the videos from the cameras and when.
As with all LAPD shootings, Sunday’s incident will be reviewed by the department, the district attorney’s office, the Police Commission and its independent inspector general.