Officer Is Sure of His Actions

Two weeks ago, Los Angeles Police Officer Steve Garcia was praised for his work because he helped apprehend the man who allegedly caused the deadly train wreck in Glendale.

Today, as the officer who fatally shot 13-year-old Devin Brown, he is a man at the center of a storm.

In brief comments to a Times reporter outside his home, Garcia, 31, declined to discuss details of the shooting, but said he was “confident” of his actions.

“Nobody wanted this to happen, on both sides,” he said. “I will say that. It’s the last thing in the world that I wanted to happen.”

Since the shooting, Garcia has been placed on desk duty

The reversal of fortunes seemed to have taken its toll on the nine-year veteran.

He said he feared for the safety of himself, his family and fellow officers.

He said he had heard that officers in the 77th Division have received death threats from people who say they plan to follow officers home. And, he was aware that the shooting has become a racially tinged incident.

“The truth will come out,” he said.

Co-workers described Garcia as a hard-working, reliable officer. “He is one of the officers that I seek out if there’s some work to be done,” said Det. Jim Vena, who has worked with Garcia at crime scenes. “Steve has always been a very conscientious, professional police officer.”