Autopsy Shows Woman Shot by Police Was Struck by 12 Bullets

A 19-year-old woman who was shot by police as she sat in her car was killed by two bullet wounds to her head and one to her chest, according to a coroner’s report.

Tyisha Miller, 19, of Rubidoux was struck a total of 12 times: There were four bullet wounds in her head, one in her chest and seven wounds in other parts of her body, the preliminary autopsy report showed.

The woman’s family has demanded a federal investigation into the shooting. Relatives of Miller, who was black, say she was unconscious when officers opened fire and have questioned whether the shooting was racially motivated. Police have said it was not.

The Riverside officers involved in the shooting--three white and one Latino--have been placed on administrative leave.

Family members said Miller was returning from a night out with friends when her car had a flat tire, and she drove to a service station about 2 a.m. Monday. There, they said, she called a cousin for help and for safety locked herself in the car to wait, with a .380-caliber semiautomatic handgun on her lap.

Officers responded to a call that a woman was locked in a car at a gas station, unresponsive after relatives banged on the window.

After getting no response to their repeated shouts, the officers tried to gain entry by smashing a window of the car.

Officers said Miller grabbed the gun and they opened fire. Initially, investigators said Miller fired at officers, but they later said they did not know who fired the first shot.

Whether Miller fired simultaneously with an officer, or fired her gun at all, is one of the many questions in the case. Another is why the woman was sitting armed and alone in her car, unresponsive to repeated efforts by friends, family and finally police.

Before the autopsy report was released Thursday, more than 150 people gathered at a meeting organized by black leaders to ask police about the investigation.

“It’s important for us to be here because we’re a part of this community and we need to know what’s going on,” said resident Avie Johnson. “We’re outraged at what’s happened.”

Lt. James Cannon said police would support federal oversight during the investigation.

“Not only do we have to protect the rights of Tyisha Miller, but also the rights of the employees of Riverside,” Cannon said.

Officials of the Congress of Racial Equality of California said they have received numerous calls from Inland Empire residents about the shooting and plan a peaceful protest Monday in Riverside.