OIS Update in Pasadena
A police officer shot and killed a young Pasadena man near the intersection of Washington and Mentone, officials said Thursday. Police said they shot the man after he opened fire on them. A young woman is in custody.
An unruly crowd and several television crews are making crowd control difficult for the Pasadena Police Department, according to reports from the scene. The shooting is the second OIS in Pasadena in the last several months.
Not sure if this is a training issue or a matter of bad timing. Perhaps Chief Barney Melekian will address some of the issues raised at the scene.
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| Frank Girardot, Metro Editor for the San Gabriel Valley Newspapers, brings you behind the yellow tape with takes on true crime, cold cases and more. This is also your forum to discuss crime, its impact on your neighborhood and how we cover it. Have any questions or tips? You can leave a comment here or e-mail Frank. |
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Brian Day is the crime reporter for the San Gabriel Valley Newspaper group. E-mail Brian. |
"training issue" - Did the copper not hit 10 ring? I would like to hear some of the *facts* before we start pointing the finger at the police.
Not being there, I won't state fact, but how in the world is it a training issue Frank when the suspect opened fire on the officers?
The training issue comment goes to several factors. Obviously, if the suspect pulled a gun or fired at officers they had every right to use deadly force. There are some other factors that played into the "training issue" or "bad timing" comment.
I believe Chief Melekian, who dislikes being questioned, should address those issues.
1) There have been three OIS in Pasadena since January. 2) The officers at the scene sounded confused about how to handle an angry crowd, and in fact there were some worries that immediately following the shooting that the crowd was out of control.
3)PPD spokeswoman Janet Pope Givens gave out contradictory and potentially false information immediately following the shooting.
4) A witness to the shooting said the suspect did not fire on officers.
Thank You Mr. Girardot. I respect and thank you for "putting it out there" very quickly.
The only things I knew when I posted was what you posted. Always great to hear when these things are evolving.
My perception was that you were referring to this specific incident (initial stop and subsequent shooting) as a training issue.
My personal experience with this type of event is that there will be a "different" story, POV, or experience for each of the people involved even when isolated and properly interviewed immediately after. As time goes by, contamination of the witnesses will cause blank spots in their recollection to be filled in by other stories.
Point 2 may be valid on its face as a training issue but the others are iffy at best as training issues.
Multiple OIS Shootings in short timeframe - There are too many variables(known and lurking) to attribute to poor training.
Point 3 (not knowing anything about timeline or Janet Givens) may be attributed to incompetence or evolving facts with pressure from press for information to hit deadlines
Point 4 - Witness credibility issues