Protests as LAPD Officer Shoots, Kills Fleeing Suspect, Possibly Armed

Snell shooting (Damian Dovarganes / Associated Press)
Damian Dovarganes / Associated Press
AWR Hawkins

A Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officer shot and killed a passenger who bailed from a car that was suspected of being stolen, and “ran into the back of a home near 107th St. and Western Ave.,” according to Southern California Public Radio.

The man who was killed was identified as Carnell Snell, Jr., according to the Associated Press.

LAPD Sgt. Barry Montgomery said the officers initiated a stop of the car under suspicion that it was stolen. The driver “failed to yield,” and a pursuit began. A male passenger “exited that vehicle and fled on foot” near Western Ave and 106th street. Officers gave chase on foot, cornering and shooting the suspect about a block away.

Montgomery said the officer who killed the suspect “feared for his life” when the shooting occurred.

KPCC reports: “A law enforcement official at the scene [said] they’ve recovered surveillance video from nearby businesses that show the suspect running with a gun, and they’ve tweeted that a gun was recovered at the scene.”

Protesters gathered from the area in which the shooting occurred. They were soon joined by protesters from other parts of the city. Black Lives Matter Los Angeles member Trevor Gerard also joined the protest, telling Southern California Public Radio, “This is a part of a culture of violence that black people in this country have experienced since we were first brought here. That has never ended.”

On Tuesday, police in El Cajon, near San Diego, shot and killed 38-year-old Alfred Okwera Olango, after he allegedly took “what appeared to be a shooting stance” and pointed an object at officers. The Los Angeles Times reported that the object was later discovered to be a vape smoking machine. Olango was a Ugandan and the Times indicates he had twice been ordered to be deported from the U.S. for drug and gun crimes.

AWR Hawkins is the Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.

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