New call for probe of skid row shooting
Homeless advocate says LAPD killing of homeless man should not be overlooked.
A homeless services commissioner called Thursday for an independent investigation into the death of a man who was shot and killed by Los Angeles police during a confrontation on skid row.
The Rev. Kelvin Sauls, pastor at Holman United Methodist Church of Los Angeles, called Charly Leundeu Keunang “one of many unarmed black men who have died at the hands of the LAPD” and said his death should not be overlooked because he was homeless.
“What we see is the LAPD continues to shoot to kill and blame the victim,” said Sauls, who was appointed to the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority in 2013 by then-Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. “Even the homeless people have dignity. There needs to be a thorough investigation by the appropriate agency.”
Sauls spoke after a news conference outside LAPD headquarters to announce a $20-million claim filed Wednesday by the Keunang family against police and the city over the March 1 shooting.
Since 2002, the city has paid more than $30 million to settle 31 lawsuits brought on behalf of people who were injured or killed in police shootings, according to a Times analysis of city data.
Keunang, 43, a Cameroonian national, spent 14 years under an assumed identity in a U.S. prison on a bank robbery conviction. After his 2014 release, he reunited with family in Massachusetts but ended up on skid row while awaiting immigration papers to return to his country, family members said.
At the news conference, attorney Dan Stormer called on Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey to investigate and criminally charge the officers involved.
Through a spokeswoman, Lacey said her office joined the Los Angeles Police Department’s pending investigation but declined further comment. Citing its investigation, a police spokesman also declined to comment.
A spokeswoman for Mayor Eric Garcetti said he was confident the LAPD and its inspector general would fully investigate the shooting, including video from body cameras worn by two of the officers. The LAPD has refused to release the videos publicly.
“Charly had made some mistakes in his life, but he was working hard to get back on his feet,” Keunang’s sister, Line Foming, said at the news conference, as her mother, Heleine Tchayou, sobbed by her side.