Chaotic morning chase, collision in downtown L.A. streets ends in police shooting motorist
A police pursuit Sunday morning in downtown Los Angeles led to a cruiser slamming into a “fixed object” and officers shooting a motorist.
Officers said they saw a “reckless driver” around 9 a.m. in the Rampart area and attempted to make a traffic stop. The driver, a man in his mid-30s, failed to stop, and officers pursued him, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.
The chase came to a halt as the police cruiser collided with what has been described only as a “fixed object” at 12th Street and Broadway. Officers in the cruiser suffered minor, non-life-threatening injuries, police said.
The pursuit picked up again after an LAPD helicopter spotted the driver, who stopped his car and fled near 12th and Hooper streets, police said.
Last month, Oakland Police Officer Tuan Le was shot and killed outside a cannabis shop. Prosecutors in Alameda County have now charged three men with murder.
Officers said they saw that the driver was “armed with a handgun,” and shooting began. LAPD Officer Tony Im was unable to clarify whether officers or the driver initiated the shooting.
The driver was struck. He was subsequently hospitalized and was in stable condition as of late Sunday afternoon, according to police.
Im could not say what the object was that officers hit with their cruiser.
“Those details are not available at this time,” he said.
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