Man Shot to Death After He Confronts Officers
A 31-year-old man who allegedly lunged at police with a four-inch steak knife was fatally shot Sunday night by two Hawthorne officers after their sergeant failed to subdue him with an electronic stun gun.
Leaza Robles of Hawthorne was shot shortly after 11 p.m. Sunday in the 4900 block of West 118th Street, where police had cornered him between a garage and a house. He was pronounced dead at the scene, according to a spokesman for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, which is investigating the shooting.
Spokesman Gabe Ramirez said Officers Kenneth Swain, 23, and Ralph Vatalaro, 24, fired 11 rounds at Robles after he pulled stun-gun darts out of his body and charged toward them. Ramirez said the officers had spotted Robles in a shopping center parking lot and chased him on foot into the nearby residential neighborhood after he refused to drop the knife.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
