CA - 13-Year Old With Airsoft Gun Shot By Police

[Kevlar]

...All three ran as the police stopped their patrol car. Abarca, a three-year veteran, encountered one of the participants standing behind a parked van on the side of the street, police said.

Judging from the person's size — 5 feet 7 and 200 pounds, according to police — Abarca believed he was a young adult.

The officer shined his flashlight on him and gave commands for him to surrender, according to an LAPD news release.

At that point, "the subject refused to comply with the officers' commands and instead produced what was later determined to be a replica Beretta 92F handgun," the release states.

Abarca, unable to see the orange tip of the gun's barrel that distinguishes it as a replica, shot and wounded what turned out to be a 13-year-old boy, police said.....

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-lapd-pellet-gun-20101219,0,7799943.story

...Los Angeles Fire Department personnel responded and took the boy to a hospital, where he underwent surgery and was listed in critical but stable condition.

After the shooting, Abarca and rescue personnel were stunned to learn that the wounded male was, in fact, just 13. The other two youths, ages 13 and 14, were detained without incident after dropping their fake handguns. Three faux weapons were recovered.

Detectives from the LAPD’s force investigation division responded to the scene. Police said they had determined that the subjects had been playing in the dark street, shooting pellets at one another with the fake handguns. They said they anticipated that no criminal charges would be filed against any of the three juveniles.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lan...tragedy-for-all-involved-chief-beck-says.html

 

[BearArms]

So he was told it was the police then he pulled out his "gun"? I don't blame them if that was what happened.

 

[MasterShinken]

First rule of airsoft, dont point at anyone not currently playing in a game with you. (especially not a cop)

 

[Skysoldier]

as Red Foreman would say...."DUMBASS!"

 

[rattletrap1970]

Um... It's L.A.

 

[dhuze]

I do not find any fault with the officers. You do not have time to decide if there is a red tip on anything that resembles a gun. There are plenty of justified shootings where it wasn't even a firearm of ony kind just a foreign object. I'm actually more surprised that the officer hit someone.
This line is a bit disturbing "They said they anticipated that no criminal charges would be filed against any of the three juveniles." Really no charges for not breaking the law?

 

[Kicker96FS]

Play stupid games...............

 

[stinx]

Orange tip means nothing, In the old days guns came in two colors stainless or Blued,nowadays peope are refinishing guns in all types of colors. Recently there was a photo of a real AK 47 with the tip spray painted orange. YMMV

 

[Fixxah]

Stinx beat me to it. Was going to say, how long until BGs start painting their iron to look fake? Copycat of a perverse reverse.

 

[GSG]

Recently there was a photo of a real AK 47 with the tip spray painted orange.

http://nashvillecitypaper.com/content/city-news/gunman-vows-continue-carrying-ak-47-parks

Leonard Embody's Draco

 

[appraiser]

you can't blame the cop he did the right thing

 

[TBalls]

Play stupid games...............

BINGO!!!!! We have a winner!!!

 

[tele_mark]

Too bad they only wounded it. Now it has a good chance of growing up to adulthood

 

[Twigg]

the subject refused to comply with the officers' commands

"Drop the F'n gun !" means Drop the F'n gun ! No habla = no excuse. (Its LA, and I'm presuming...)

 

[stinx]

Thanks for posting the link with the picture of the real AK with an orange tip. Leonard Embody' is an idiot.YMMV

 

[Bob P]

This is the same force that shot a guy with a garden hose in his own front yard claiming they thought it was a gun. Just remember that in the rush to judgment.

 

[Mikel131]

Play stupid games...............

This

 

[mchncbill]

This is the same force that shot a guy with a garden hose in his own front yard claiming they thought it was a gun. Just remember that in the rush to judgment.

hell if i shot an innocent kid the statement would say exactly what it needed to say to clear me. trigger happy cops

 

[cekim]

Another fine parenting failure...

I am sure the media in its various facets will blame absolutely everything else but the parents of this idiot, but that's the part that is broken here...

I'd like to say he won't do that again, but ongoing parenting failure vastly increases the odds that he will be told everything but the truth of the matter (again see "parenting failure") and grow up hating the police and blaming society for everything that goes wrong in his life...

 

[Broc]

5 feet 7 and 200 pounds, according to police — Abarca believed he was a young adult.

thats one big 13 year old.

This is the same force that shot a guy with a garden hose in his own front yard claiming they thought it was a gun. Just remember that in the rush to judgment.

i was just thinking that. But i thought that happened in Florida.

 

[Bob P]

thats one big 13 year old.


i was just thinking that. But i thought that happened in Florida.

Nope, Long Beach.

 

[theGringo]

thats one big 13 year old.

It's all the growth hormones they put into the food. I swear it.

 

[blindfire]

Nope, Long Beach.

Long Beach or LA. Justified shoot.

 

[Bob P]

Long Beach or LA. Justified shoot.

I'm glad you're so confident. Because the LAPD never get the wrong guy or try to cover it up when the screw up. Nope. Not them.