Officer Involved Shooting in North Hollywood NR13519bm

December 20, 2013

UPDATE

The officers involved in the below incident have been identified as Police Officer II Richard Jimenez and Nick Cortez. 

Los Angeles:  On Sunday, November 22, 2013, around 7:45 p.m., North Hollywood Area patrol officers responded to a “415 Man with a gun” radio call at the intersection of Burbank Boulevard and Riverton Avenue.  As the officers approached the intersection, they saw the suspect, later identified as Jose Mendoza walking southbound across the street.  As the officers prepared to stop and conduct a pedestrian stop, Mendoza suddenly turned, faced the officer’s vehicle, and withdrew a handgun from his waistband.  The officers exited their vehicle and an officer involved shooting occurred.  Mendoza was struck by gunfire and fell to the ground.

Mendoza was taken into custody without further incident.  Mendoza was transported to an area hospital where he was pronounced dead.  No officers were injured and a handgun was recovered from the street.

Force Investigation Division responded to the incident and will conduct a thorough investigation of the officer involved shooting.

The investigation will ultimately be reviewed by the Chief of Police, the Office of the Inspector General and 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 about this incident is urged 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 www.LAPDOnline.org, click on "webtips" and follow the prompts.