The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said Dijon Kizzee was shot after he picked up a gun.
Capt. Kent Wegener said Thursday that the Aug. 31 shooting, which launched protests that, at times, turned violent, took place after Kizzee, who is black, bent down and picked up a pistol.
This contradicts reports that Kizzee was unarmed at the time that he was shot.
Wegener said that officers first attempted to detain Kizzee because of a traffic violation he allegedly perpetrated while riding his bicycle. Kizzee fled the scene, fell, abandoned his bike, and ran from deputies, and officers did not know Kizzee was in possession of a loaded 9mm pistol when they found him, he said.
According to Wegener, one deputy exited the vehicle and attempted to detain him. Kizzee allegedly raised his hands and had cloth in both hands with the pistol concealed. The officer and Kizzee got into a struggle, and Kizzee threw “punches into the deputy’s face.” During the struggle, the pistol fell to the ground between Kizzee and the deputy.
When the deputies saw the weapon, they drew theirs. Wegener described that Kizzee then “stopped, bent over, reached back, and picked up the pistol.” He said that is the moment when the officers fired on Kizzee.
A combined total of 19 rounds were fired. Kizzee was pronounced dead at the scene.
Video of the incident was shown during the press conference and appeared to match the officer’s description but is difficult to interpret because of poor quality. It is unclear from the video alone whether Kizzee had a gun in his hand when he was shot.
Police said that Kizzee was prohibited from owning a firearm as a condition of an active restraining order against him and because of his criminal record as a convicted felon. The weapon was later confirmed to be a stolen one.
Wegener added that witness reports of the incident were collected and recorded and that they will be released when the full investigation is published.
An autopsy of Kizzee’s body has not been completed or published.
Najee Ali, a representative for Kizzee’s family and their attorney, held a separate press conference after the one held by the sheriff’s office. He said that Kizzee was running away when the incident took place.
“Dijon was the only person trying to deescalate the situation that caused his murder. Dijon was terrified of the police, and that’s why he ran.” Ali added, “The witnesses have said that Dijon was shot with his hands up.”
Ali told reporters that Kizzee wasn’t reaching for a gun but merely was shot as he fell over. Whether he was grabbing a gun is unclear from the tape.
Ali explained that the family was not disputing whether Kizzee was in possession of a gun, but whether he was holding it or pointing it at the officers.
Kizzee’s family is calling for the county sheriff’s resignation.
“This was an execution,” Ali said.
