An Anaheim officer on patrol working a gang enforcement assignment shot and killed a man in front of a home Friday night, but what prompted the officer to fire was unclear, authorities said Saturday, Dec. 7.
Two officers were on patrol around 9:30 p.m. in the 800 block of South Philadelphia Street when they stopped to talk with some people in front of a home, Sgt. Matt Sutter said.
At some point during the interaction, one of the officers fired, hitting a man, Sutter said. The man died at the scene and a firearm was found nearby.
“In the aftermath, an unruly crowd started to form,” Sutter said. For the safety of everyone, “we had to disperse the crowd and during that time, one subject was hit with a less-lethal (projectile).”
That person was treated at the scene and taken to a hospital, Sutter said.
Video from OC Hawk, a freelance news organization, showed a man loaded into an ambulance who appeared to be bleeding from the neck.
How many people were in front of the home when the officers stopped was not known.
The suspect’s identity was withheld by police pending notification of his relatives.
The Orange County District Attorney’s Office responded to the scene to investigate the actions of the officer, Sutter said. Anaheim police homicide detectives were investigating the actions of the suspect.