Three LAPD officers are hospitalized in stable condition with gunshot wounds and the parolee they were trying to detain is dead after a confrontation that ended Wednesday night in Lincoln Heights.
According to authorities, officers trying to detain a individual on parol in the 3800 block of North Broadway called for assistance from SWAT and K-9 officers after the man refused commands to surrender and blockaded himself in a shed.
Officials said several hours after the incident began, officers fired tear gas. They said at that point the parolee fired at officers — with at least one returning fire. The officers wounded are all male and members of the K-9 unit in the Metropolitan Division, according to LAPD officials, who described all three as senior officers.
An investigation is ongoing, which is routine in any shooting involving officers.
Assistant LAPD Chief Al Labrada said Wednesday night that the incident began about 3:50 p.m., saying the timeline "shows a level of patience and the officers trying to deescalate and resolve the situation."
Following the shooting, a large perimeter was established in the area. Labrada thanked residents for their patience.
He said he did not have details to share about the identity of the parolee or more about the circumstances of his death.
Mayor Karen Bass, speaking at a news conference Wednesday night outside of County-USC Hospital, said she had talked to two of the injured officers being treated there. She said the officers she spoke to were concerned about their colleagues who, at that point, were still seeking the parolee.
"Every day the men and women of the Los Angeles Police Department put themselves in harm's way," she said. "Tonight is a reminder that the danger is very real."
Bass also said more needed to be done to take guns "off our streets," noting that she was at a weekend event with the LAPD on that issue.
