A police officer shot and killed an unarmed, mentally challenged black man in Los Angeles on Monday, his family said.
Family members identified Ezell Ford, 25, as the man the cop killed on the 200 block of West 65th St. about 8:20 p.m. And one eyewitness says the officer yelled “shoot him” before killing the man in the street.
His mother, Tritobia Ford, said the shooting was unjustified and that her son was complying with the officer’s orders, according to local media.
“My heart is so heavy,” she told KTLA. “My son was a good kid. He didn’t deserve to die the way he did.”
Ford, she said, was lying on the ground when the officer shot him in the back three times.
A man claiming to be Ford’s cousin told the station he witnessed the incident and that there was no justification for excessive force.
“They laid him out and for whatever reason, they shot him in the back, knowing, mentally, he has complications. Every officer in this area, from the Newton Division, knows that — that this child has mental problems,” he told KTLA.
And another eyewitness told the Huffington Post that an officer screamed out “shoot him” before the unarmed Ford was filled with three slugs.
The Los Angeles Police Department told a different story in a news release on Tuesday. It confirmed that an “officer-involved-shooting” took place during an “investigative stop” but claimed that a “struggle ensured” before the bullets were fired.
“It is unknown if the suspect has any gang affiliations,” the statement reads.
But the eyewitness, Leroy Hill said, “he wasn’t a gangbanger at all.”
“They had him in the corner and were beating him, busted him up, for what reason I don’t know he didn’t do nothing,” Hill told the Huffington Post. “The next thing I know I hear a ‘pow!’ while he’s on the ground. They got the knee on him. And then I hear another ‘pow!’ No hesitation. And then I hear another ‘pow!’ Three times.”
The young man died after being transported to a nearby hospital and no officers were injured.
The LAPD release said that it is unknown if the “suspect” was connected to any gangs.
Ford’s friends and family organized a demonstration outside the LAPD police headquarters for Sunday at 3 p.m.
USA Today reports that Ford was unarmed during the incident.
Twitter users have already started using the hashtag #EzellFord to connect his death with the killing of Michael Brown, 18, in suburban St. Louis — also at the hands of a police officer.
“The Force Investigation Division is conducting a thorough investigation and this will ultimately be reviewed by the chief of police,” LAPD Officer Sally Madera told the Daily News.
Madera could not comment on whether the officer involved was placed on leave during the investigation.
The Los Angeles County coroner was not immediately available for comment.
mwalsh@nydailynews.com
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