Warning: The video is graphic and contains strong language.
A fatal police shooting captured on video Saturday raised questions about police use of force. The video shows two Los Angeles Sheriff’s deputies firing on a man as he walks away from them. The man falls and crawls away as the deputies continue to fire.
The Sheriff’s Department said the man was armed with a handgun and had fired it into the air, the L.A. Times reports. At a press conference today, officials showed photos and video, which appeared to show the man holding a gun. An investigation is underway.
The video is the latest of many to emerge this year that document fatal shootings by police. These videos—and the deaths they capture—have prompted national conversations about police violence.
The Sheriff’s Department issued a statement urging the public not to judge the deputies’ actions based on the video. “In this modern age of cellphone video and instant analysis on the Internet, I would ask that we keep in mind that a thorough and comprehensive investigation is detailed and time-intensive,” Sheriff Jim McDonnell wrote. “It will involve not just one source of information, but numerous sources, potentially including multiple videos, physical evidence and eyewitness accounts.”
Family members identified the man killed in the video as Nicholas Robertson, a 28-year-old father and husband, according to KTLA. Community members gathered last night to protest near the gas station where Robertson was shot, and #NicholasRobertson has started circulating on Twitter.
Illustration by Max Fleishman
