Man, 83, Shot by Police May Have Been Living in Car

An 83-year-old man shot by police officers when he reportedly pointed a gun at them may have been living in the Mercedes-Benz that he was driving when they stopped him, authorities said Thursday.

Officials said they found boxes in the 1991 car owned by Henry Peterson of Sun Valley, which led them to believe he may have been living in it. Police have also not been able to locate any relatives in the area.

“He had a lot of boxes and weird stuff in the trunk, like old chicken bones, kind of pack-rat stuff,” said Sgt. John Pasquariello, spokesman for the Los Angeles Police Department.

Peterson was struck by at least three bullets fired Wednesday by Valley Traffic Division Officers Sam Davis and Van Thompson as they arranged to tow away his car because he did not have a valid driver’s license. The six-year LAPD veterans stopped Peterson on San Fernando Road for alleged speeding.

Peterson allegedly pointed a .22-caliber handgun at the officers but did not fire.

He was in fair condition Thursday at Providence Holy Cross Medical Center in Mission Hills with gunshot wounds to his arm, leg and foot.

He will be arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer when he is released from the hospital, Pasquariello said.

An LAPD internal investigation team is looking into the shooting. It could take up to six months to determine whether the officers acted appropriately, Pasquariello said.

Davis and Thompson will remain on duty during the investigation because their actions seem to fall within the department’s guidelines for self-defense, Pasquariello said.

“We never shoot to kill,” he said. “We shoot to stop. The best way to do that if somebody has a gun pointed at you is to traumatize him, shoot at his central body mass.”

The Los Angeles County district attorney’s office, which investigates officer-involved shootings, will determine whether criminal charges should be filed against Davis and Thompson, spokeswoman Sandi Gibbons said.