2 Plead Not Guilty in Shooting of Long Beach Officer

While a Long Beach police officer struggled to stay alive Tuesday, two men charged in his shooting pleaded not guilty to attempted murder.

Abel Dominguez, 31, remained in critical condition after a gunman shot him three times, once in the head, during a routine traffic stop Friday.

Meanwhile, Nathan Janal Sims, 21, and Cashus Ward, 19, were arraigned Tuesday in Long Beach Municipal Court, where their preliminary hearing was set for Aug. 20. The Long Beach residents were charged with attempted murder and the lynching of a prisoner, a legal term meaning they freed someone who was in police custody.

Authorities said that Sims shot Dominguez shortly after the officer stopped motorist Melvin Johnson, 26, for speeding on 49th Street near Long Beach Boulevard. The officer was in the front seat of his patrol car running a computer check on Johnson, who was sitting in the back.

According to prosecutors, Sims walked up to the patrol car and opened fire on the officer, a five-year veteran of the department and the father of three young children.

“It was pretty bold. He was just sitting there. He was a sitting duck,” said Deputy Dist. Atty. Barbara Turner of the Crimes Against Police Officers unit.

Ward then opened the back of the patrol car to let Johnson out, Turner said. “It’s pure speculation, but (Sims) either wanted to release the prisoner in the rear seat or he’s someone out to kill a cop,” Turner said.

Police unsuccessfully sought to press murder charges Tuesday against Johnson and his 28-year-old brother, Andre Johnson, who police said was also in the area and detained for questioning. But there was insufficient evidence that either man participated in the crime, said James Cosper of the Long Beach district attorney’s office.

Instead, Andre Johnson was charged with possession of cocaine, and he pleaded not guilty during an arraignment Tuesday.