Latest Guides

Public Safety

Pasadena Police Criticized for 4-Year Delay in Fatal Shooting Review

Independent auditor calls for concurrent investigations to improve accountability

Published on Thursday, October 10, 2024 | 1:44 pm
 

Pasadena’s Independent Police Auditor (IPA) Dr. Richard Rosenthal, released a report on his review of the Pasadena Police Department’s administrative review and investigation into the 2020 fatal shooting of Lloyd Nelson, Jr. The report is dated Sept. 30 and was released Thursday.

Nelson was shot and killed by Pasadena police after the Mitsubishi he was driving struck a police cruiser head-on following a slow-speed chase with police.

The former LASD deputy and Marine fired two shots through the windshield of his car at a Pasadena police officer, according to video footage shown to local reporters a month after the shooting.

Nelson continued to fire as he sprang from his vehicle before he was fatally wounded on Corson Street near Allen Avenue.

A police officer suffered a gunshot wound in the leg during the incident.

Rosenthal criticized the Pasadena Police Department for taking more than four years to complete its administrative review of a fatal officer-involved shooting.

Rosenthal cited “negative impact on the administration of justice and police accountability” due to the prolonged review process.

Despite the delay, Rosenthal concurred that the shooting appears to have been within policy and justified based on both criminal and administrative standards.

The report reveals a timeline spanning from the incident date to the final review on September 17.

It notes that officers voluntarily participated in criminal interviews three days after the incident, giving up their Constitutional right to remain silent.

Rosenthal highlighted that the District Attorney’s office took over three years to clear officers of criminal conduct, followed by an additional year for the department to complete its internal review.

“It is simply impossible for a department to hold officers accountable, or even support officers who have acted appropriately, without conducting timely administrative reviews of officer uses of deadly force,” Rosenthal wrote.

The auditor also noted that the review of a police pursuit preceding the shooting remains pending after four years, calling it “hugely problematic” given the high-risk nature of the tactics involved.

While praising improvements in the department’s investigative process compared to a previous case, Rosenthal expressed concern over the accidental shooting of an officer by another during the incident. An officer who fired 16 rounds at Nelson accidentally wounded a fellow officer. The department deemed this “friendly fire” incident within policy due to the extraordinary circumstances faced by the officer.

The report also addressed issues with body-worn camera activations, including one officer’s delayed activation and another’s failure to activate until after firing his weapon.

Rosenthal recommended the department conduct concurrent administrative and criminal investigations for all critical incidents, citing the Los Angeles Police Department’s adoption of this practice as a model for timely and effective reviews. He also suggested additional training on public safety statements for supervisors.

The report revealed three other fatal officer-involved shooting cases at various stages of review, with delays ranging from six months to nearly three years. These cases involve Devon Hall (November 23, 2021), Adam Youines (July 30, 2022), and Ricardo Andrade (April 13, 2024).

Chief Eugene Harris has ordered the administrative investigation into the 2021 shooting of Devon Hall  be completed even without a District Attorney letter, showing a commitment to more timely reviews.

Get our daily Pasadena newspaper in your email box. Free.

Get all the latest Pasadena news, more than 10 fresh stories daily, 7 days a week at 7 a.m.

Make a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

 

 

 

 

buy ivermectin online
buy modafinil online
buy clomid online
 
buy ivermectin online