Officer-Involved Shooting in Echo Park NR13094ne

March 31, 2013

***UPDATE*** The officers involved in the below officer-involved shooting has been identified as: Police Officer III Alfredo Morales, Police Officer I Houston Stauber, Police Officer II Gerald Adams, and Shaun Hillmann.

Los Angeles: On March 19, 2013, around 12:20 a.m., Los Angeles Police Department, Rampart Area patrol officers responded to an “Assault with a Deadly Weapon, “Suspect There Now” radio call. The comments of the call described the suspect as a male Hispanic Echo Park Gang member wearing glasses. The suspect was reported to have brandished a gun and had also fired two shots.

When the officers arrived, they initiated contact with the suspect, David Martinez. Officers saw Martinez holding an object which they believed was a pistol. Martinez failed to comply with the officers’ commands to drop the pistol. As Martinez ran from the officers, he turned and raised his arm pointing what the officers believed to be a pistol at them at which time an officer-involved shooting occurred.

The Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics responded and transported Martinez to a local hospital where he was listed in stable condition. There were no injuries to the involved officers. No weapon was recovered at the scene.

Force Investigation Division Detectives are investigating the incident.

The investigation will ultimately be reviewed by the Chief of Police, Office of the Inspector General and the Board of Police Commissioners for compliance with the Department’s use-of-force policy which states that an officer’s use-of-force actions must be objectively reasonable. Additionally, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Justice System Integrity Division will conduct a comprehensive review of the facts of the officer-involved shooting.

Anyone with information is asked to call Force Investigation Division at 213-486-5230. During non-business hours or on weekends, calls should be directed to 1-877-LAPD-24-7 (877-527-3247). Anyone wishing to remain anonymous should call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (800-222-8477). Tipsters may also contact Crime Stoppers by texting to phone number 274637 (C-R-I-M-E-S on most keypads) with a cell phone. All text messages should begin with the letters “LAPD.” Tipsters may also go to LAPDOnline.org, click on “webtips” and follow the prompts.