SOUTH-CENTRAL LOS ANGELES : Man Who Points Gun at Officers Shot to Death
A partially paralyzed man was shot to death by two Los Angeles police officers in South-Central Los Angeles after drawing a gun and shouting: “I want to die, go ahead and shoot me,” authorities said.
Enrique DelaCruz, 24, was killed on Thursday after drawing an unloaded gun and pointing it at one of the officers, said Los Angeles Police Department Lt. William Hall. Police, who were investigating the death Friday, said DelaCruz apparently had attempted suicide earlier in the day. His friends had summoned police to his apartment on South Hooper Avenue when he began stabbing himself in the legs with a knife, Hall said.
When Newton Division Officers Rudy Vidal, 36, and Mark Dimitt, 31, entered the room, DelaCruz reached under a mattress and pulled the gun, Hall said. Vidal fired four shots at DelaCruz and Dimitt fired three times, Hall said.
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.
