Teen Shot, Wounded by Deputy

A sheriff’s deputy in Lakewood shot and wounded a teenage boy Saturday night after the boy pulled a fake handgun from his waistband, authorities said.

The boy, who was shot in the right leg, was treated at a local hospital and released.

The incident began after two deputies, conducting surveillance in a homicide investigation on Shadeway Road, saw two young men walking toward them with what looked like pistols in their waistbands, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

The deputies got out of their car and ordered the teens to raise their hands in the air. One complied. The other pulled what looked like a handgun from his waistband. Fearing for his own and his partner’s safety, one of the deputies shot the youth, a Sheriff’s Department spokesman said.

When the deputies detained the boys, they discovered that the guns were fake. The boys were released; the Sheriff’s Department is considering whether to seek charges against the boys.