Kevin Wicks, 38

                           

Kevin Wicks, 38, a black man was killed by an Inglewood police officer in the 100 block of North Hillcrest Blvd. in Inglewood about 12:30 a.m. Monday, July 21.

According to a statement from the Inglewood Police Department, officers responded to a radio call of a domestic disturbance at Wicks' apartment. Police said officers knocked on the door, and Wicks opened it. "At one point while the door was ajar, the officers observed that Wicks was holding a handgun," the statement said. "Wicks then suddenly raised the handgun at the officers, which resulted in one officer firing his weapon in self-defense."

Wicks was taken by ambulance to an area hospital where he was pronounced dead. Police said a gun registered to Wicks was recovered at the scene. Several residents say the officers were at the wrong location, but police said that was not the case.  Hours after the shooting, family members, residents and community activists gathered outside Wicks' apartment complex to speak out against the shooting.  Family members said Wicks worked for the U.S. Postal Service and had two daughters.

Police said they have placed Officer Brian Ragan, who's been with the department for 5 1/2 years, on administrative leave following the shooting. Ragan was also placed on administrative leave May 11 for the shooting of Michael Byoune, 19, Larry White 19, and Chris Larkin 21. Byoune died from his wounds.  This is the second officer-involved shooting this month in Inglewood. On July 1, 23-year-old Ruben Walton Ortega was shot to death in an alley during a foot pursuit.

Times staff writers Joanna Lin and Andrew Blankstein report more on Inglewood's officer-involved shooting.

Also, Times staff writer Joel Rubin reports on Los Angeles Police Chief William J. Bratton's proposal to change how he and his command staff deal with officers who use serious force during altercations.

UPDATE: Inglewood Police Department release radio transcripts of disturbance call.

Photo by Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times

(You have reached the end of the weekly listing of homicide victims in Los Angeles County, July 20-27, 2008.)

This year in Los Angeles County there have been at total of 33 fatal shootings involving law enforcement officers. Only one officer, Randall Simons, 51, was killed in one of those shootings.

• Glenn Boldware, 47, a black man, was hot and killed by an LAPD officer in the 1800 block of N. Sawtelle Boulevard in West Los Angeles about 2:15 a.m. Friday, Jan.14.
• Edwin Rivera, 20, a young Latino man, was shot and killed by a sniper in a police standoff at 19828 Welby Way in Winnetka shortly after 5 a.m.  Thursday, Feb. 7.
• Ariel Perez, 21, a young Latino, was shot and killed by an off-duty LAPD officer during a home invasion robbery at 250 Seaside Way in Long beach about 4:38 p.m. Friday, Feb. 8.
• Carlos Castillos, 22, a young Latino man, was shot and killed in an officer-involved shooting at the intersection of Park View Street and Ocean View Avenue near MacArthur Park at about 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 16.
• Daniel Leon, 22, a young Latino man, was shot and killed in an officer-involved shooting at the intersection of Drew Street and Estara avenues in Glassell Park at about noon Thursday, Feb. 21.
• Byron San Jose, 25, a young Latino, was shot and killed by a police officer  at Valerio Street and Kester Avenue in Van Nuys about 7:05 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 27.
• Carlos Edwin Arevalo, 22, a Latino man, was killed in an officer-involved shooting at 3411 Loosmore St. in Cypress Park at about 6: 25 p.m. Friday, Feb. 29.
• Maurice LeRoy Cox, 38, a black man, was killed in an officer-involved shooting at the intersection of Crenshaw Boulevard and Slauson Avenue in Hyde Park about 7:30 p.m. Saturday, March 1. Cox's family has filed a lawsuit against LAPD for the shooting.
• Lawrence Smith, 24, a young black man, was fatally shot in an officer-involved shooting at 5160 Vineland Ave. in North Hollywood at about 5:45 p.m. Tuesday, March 4.
• Ryan Daniel Gonzalez, a 26-year-old Latino man, was shot by an off-duty deputy U.S. marshal behind 7315 Melrose Ave. in hollywood just before midnight Wednesday, March 5.
• Sergio Jose Rojas, 21, a young Latino man, was shot multiple times in an officer-involved shooting at the Ramona Gardens Housing Development  in Boyle Heights about 6 p.m. Wednesday, March 12. 
• Marco Ernesto Avila, 33, a Latino man, was shot and killed by police officers at the intersection of Watson Avenue and L Street in Wilmington about 8:55 p.m. Thursday, March 13.
• Rodney Carl Sandberg, 24, a white man, was shot multiple times inside a trailer home in an officer-involved shooting at 1820 Torrance Blvd in Torrance about 9:44 p.m. Saturday, March 15.
• Sergio Sedillo, 26, a Latino man, was killed in a gun battle with police officers at the intersection of Pacific Coast Highway and Eubank Avenue in Wilmington about 2:51 p.m. Wednesday, April 2.
• Daniel Gonzalez, 28, a Latino man, was shot and killed in an officer-involved shooting in Glendale about 9:30 p.m. Monday, March 31.
• Jonathan Taylor, 24, a young black man, was killed during a gun battle with police officer from El Segundo Police Departmen about 10:15 p.m. Friday, April 11.
• Fernando Cortez, 21, a young Latino man, was killed in a deputy-involved shooting in the 1500 block of East 92nd Street in Florence about 5:55 p.m. Saturday, April 12.
• Richard Dale, a 54-year-old white man, was killed by officers from the Torrance Police Department about 12:45 a.m. Saturday, April 19.
• Marco Gomez, 31, a Latino man, was killed in an officer-involved shooting in the 1400 block of 23rd Street in South Los Angeles about 11:05 p.m. Friday, May 2.
• Michael Byoune, 19, was shot and killed by Inglewood police officers in the 3000 block of Manchester Boulevard in Inglewood about 1:40 a.m. Sunday, May 11.
• Samuel Om, a 21-year-old Asian man, was fatally shot at the intersection of West 7th Street and Westmore Avenue in the Westlake area about 12:15 a.m. Monday, May 13.
• Glenn Patrick Rose, 25, a white man, was shot and killed by deputies and officers while driving a pickup truck in the 300 block of 1st Avenue in Covina about 2:07 a.m. Tuesday, May 13.
• Roketi Su'e, 46, a Samoan man, was shot and killed by Long Beach police officers in the 3400 block of East 67th Street in Long Beach about 7 p.m. Saturday, May 17.
• Carlos Rivera, 17, a Latino youth, was fatally shot by officers from LAPD's Newton Division in the 100 block of East 45th Street near Exposition Park about 7:20 p.m. Saturday, May 17.
• Ilda Ebe Grasso, 52, a Latina woman, was shot and killed in an officer-involved shooting at Hellman and Garfield avenues in Alhambra about 11:10 p.m. Tuesday, June 10.
• Bryan Moore, 26, a black man, was shot and killed by sheriff's deputies in the 1000 block of East 150th Street in Compton on Thursday, June 26.
• Ruben Walton Ortega, 23, a young black man, was shot and killed by an Inglewood police officers in the 11100 block of Crenshaw Boulevard in Inglewood about 6:15 p.m. Tuesday, July 1.
• Kevin Wicks, 38, a black man, listed above, was killed by Inglewood police officers in the 100 block of North Hillcrest Boulevard in Inglewood about 12:30 a.m. Monday, July 21.
• Jesse More, 56, a black man, was shot and killed by police officers at Central Avenue and Wilde Street in downtown Los Angeles about 10:20 p.m.Thursday, July 31.
• Eric Liebowitz, 35, a white man, was shot and killed in an officer-involved shooting in 5800 block of Balcom Avenue in Encino about 11 a.m. Tuesday, Aug. 5.
• Gerardo Arvallo, 32 a Latino man, was shot and killed by Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's SWAT team in the 3100 block of Los Flores Boulevard in Lynwood about 11:30 Monday, Aug. 11.
• Freddie Felix Franco, 56, a Latino man, was shot and killed by Inglewood Police officers at Market Street and Hillcrest Boulevard in Inglewood about Sunday, Aug. 31.

Update: The total number of officer-involved shootings is now up to 33 in Los Angeles County. This section was updated Thursday, Sept. 4.

-Ruben Vives/LAT

Comments

[Foclipz]

A man does right all his life only to get murderd by the Police or by a gangbanger. As a black man at the age of 25---this is what I worry about. I gotta watch for some active banger or the police. And the cop is the same one who shot and killed a 19 year old boy. Inglewood PD shouldnt b suprised when someone gives your department a reason to pull out your guns and fire. If you have a badge and u abuse your authority. . you are only fueling the fire in the community you supposedly are protecting. For every situation like this. every minor harrasment of innocent persons.......for every minor trivial reason to pull over someone you no u dont need to........for every bs ticket you write up n u no u have discretion to give a warning but u dont......Ur loosing tens of thousands of people everyday cus we all got family and word spred quick that the police arent our friends. And the IPD police cheif is on vacation? give me a break. To who ever called the police that nite you have blood on your hands. you help pull the trigger. Dont call the police for help. They will execute a black man on the spot. Why are black people in LA r still getting shot and killed by the police in 2008. LA cops are afraid of the black man.

[A Rothman]

If this community is suspicious of police, they should dismantle the entire department and police the streets themselves. The police are also innocent until gound guilty. The guy answered the door with a GUN. Sounds pretty cut and dry for me.

[cindy]

Im sorry, but If i lived in the city of Inglewood and owned a weapon, and someone had the nerve to knock on my door at midnight I would have opened the door with a gun in my hands as well.

Completly outrages. The cop's second killing and he is on paid leave!!! thats horrible.
They are just asking for more violence and even a riot if this continues.

[Medina]

The cops in Inglewood are more than just on edge. I Iive in Lennox on the south side of inglewood, I'm a light skinned latino and I've been pulled over, gotten the forty question why are you here, where are the drugs? I was in the middle of finals in college. The cops here are crazy. There was a shooting next door to my place. You definitely have to watch out for both the cops and the gangbangers in this neighborhood. There's no money in this part of town, no programs to clean up streets. Just a bunch of edgy cops. I lived Santa Monica before nothing like this has ever happened to me there before.
All the money goes to west LA, Hollywood, Santa Monica the rest of us have to live in squalor....

[KaRi from LONG BEACH]

FYI Long Beach Citizens, LBPD and NAACP are proactive by working on Guidelines on HOW TO RESPOND TO THE POLICE when approached.. more on www.LBweeklyOnline.com homepage AND Blog (7/17-present).

We NEED to be on the same page re: this subject AND the police need to have guidelines in place re: Taser Use (See TASER TV on ThePrimeSpot.TV)

Thanks to your attention in this very important matter. KaRi from ThePrime Spot in Long Beach!

[sewt]

we were not there so it's the public's word against the community. i personally don't believe this man pointed a gun at police. the police always use this same excuse to justify their actions. what happened to the "less lethal" means of taking control of a situation. this has to stop. maybe if they use rubber bullets, stun gun or the old fashioned billy club maybe both sides can be heard in the end. officers taking these fatal shots leave the story one sided and another question mark for the community and families to swallow. i live in this city and i beg for Chief Seabrooks to step to the plate and handle these matters truthfully and hold those responsible accountable for their actions and not hide behind the shield. i know the Chief personally and i respect her and have high regard for her as a professional

[RS]

From what I remember of Kevin, he was a nice guy. He was ok in my book. God Bless you & your family!

The Jennings Family

[Jay]

What I really don't get in this case is that their is a bullet through the door, but yet the policy stated that he open the door and that they seen him with a gun and decided to shoot. What would be the reason for shooting through the door, Hmmmmm! This is the 5th shooting in the Crenshaw district involving officers in 2008. Two (2) on Slauson & Crenshaw in the month of Feb & Mar, One (1) on Crenshaw & Manchester in the month of May, One (1) on 111th & Crenshaw about 2 weeks ago, and now THIS. 2 of the shootings involves the same cop. Somethings wrong here. When a officer is killed in the line of duty, it has to be publicized about how many years he/she had with the department, its very sad to lose one of our own, he/she will e leave behind a wife/huband and how ever many children, that he never did anything but served his/her country, and so on...JOKE!!!! I don't feel anything when I hear it. What happen to just using lasers and shooting in the kneecap, uh? THE POLICE GET AWAY WITH THIS TYPE OF STUFF ALL THE TIME. Only GOD can judge us and when you get it back, it won't be good. Do these cops feel anything when it come to God?

To the family: KEEP PRAY IN YOUR LIFE AND DON’T GIVE UP. Be not embarrassed of God, he has everything you need.

[Scrap From da 4]

My previous comment did not get posted. However, all I said was the decision to allow the cop back on the streets so quickly after the last killing was atrocious, idiotic, downright irresponsible. He seems trigger happy and eager to shoot whenever an opportunity presents itself. L.A. Times please post this comment.

[Frustrated (retired) Officer]

The misinformed (thanks to the media) public automatically assumes that anytime someone is shot by the police that it's just one more example of rogue police officers acting outside the law and departmental policy. They believe this because it's what they want to beleive. It's sport to hate the police, or for that matter anybody in a position of authority.

The police didn't magically show up at Mr. Wick's front door. They were there in response to a domestic violence call. These calls are the most dangerous calls that police officers respond to on a daily basis and often result in violence towards the police officers that are there to protect the parties from eachother. The police are are on high alert when responding to calls of violence, but particularly DomVio calls.

The Inglewood police officer arrives and sees Mr. Weeks through an open door holding a gun (I guess he wasn't innocently sleeping in bed as many would have you beleive). He sees the uniformed officer in his doorway and raises his gun towards the police officer. What were they to do? Some idiot said they should have used less than lethal on him. That presupposes that there was an officer at the door that already had his weapon ready for deployment. First of all you don't bean bag someone pointing a gun at you. That's ridiculous. You have no time for thought or negotiation. This is when training, muscle memory kicks in. Regrettably you do what you have to do to survive. Inglewood is a crime infested warzone. You should thank God that there are brave men and women that are willing to place there lives on the line to protect people, the majority of which, bring on their own misfortunes.

What the LA Times glosses over to further their "All cops are racist thugs" agenda, is fail to give any detail on Mr. Weeks other than he was an angelic, lovable teddy bear of a postal employee. Somebody called for help giving his apartment as the address of the violence. Who? Does Mr. Weeks have any sort of criminal background? Has he ever been involved in domestic violence? Have the police ever been to his apartment before? Have the neigbors ever heard arguing coming from that apartment. You receive none of this in todays narrowly focused article. The whole purpose of the article was to condenm and castigate police officers in general, but the police officer who did the shooting in particular. I guess the LA Times doesn't want to muddy the waters with the facts. Innocent shooting "victim" good, police "bad".

If it's true that Mr. Weeks is the squeeky clean, boyscoutish, loyal postal employee that the LA Times is making him out to be, he has no record of violence, and the police received bad information for some reason that brought them to that apt door, then it's a tragic accident, but it only that, an accident. When Mr. Weeks saw the police standing in his doorway and pointed his gun at them, they had no choice but to shoot him in the chest. There are uninformed fools out there (many) that will say ludicrous things like "Why didn't the police use less than lethal or why didn't they shoot him in the leg?", these people have no idea what they are talking about. These decisions are made in miliseconds. You have no time to think; you react. You react or you die.

Nice job LA Times. Once again you stir the racial pot and then wonder why LA is such a cauldron of racial tension. I guess it sells papers and we all know that print medea is going the way of the dinosaur.

Jay above is the type of reactionary fool I am talking about. He has no clue. I hope he doesn't procreate.

[PMH]

Why isn't the July 12th shooting of two suspects by the Special Investigation Section included on the list? It was covered by the LAT.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-ois12-2008jul12,0,3350197.story

[Fed Up]

Kevin Wicks was minding his own business in his own home. Who can blame him for answering an unexpected knock on the door at that hour with self-protection? Too many cops are being gunned down, too. Who can blame them for being hyper alert? I think that after a cop has killed, no matter the circumstances, that cop should be off the streets for at least for one year doing desk duty. If there's another killing, that cop should be permanently taken off the streets and assigned to other duties.

[Tookie Daniels]

It's very heartbreaking to come to this blog and read about all of the killings that occur everyday........It's even worse when you come across a name that belongs to a person you know..........I met Kevin many years ago and can honestly say that everytime he and I came in contact, he was always pleasant.....A kindhearted man who didn't deserve to be killed by the very people who are paid to protect and serve.

To his family and love ones, I pray that the Lord blesses you all with JUSTICE, PEACE and COMFORT.....

Sincerely,

Tookie

[gunny]

no excuses.. the investigation will be done..if he answered the door with a gun an officer has a plit second to make a decision.Everyone likes to sit back adn judge the officer,he has a family he wants to go home to at the end of the night, he has a right to defend himself. If he was a Black Officer we wouldnt even be talking about this, what a joke

[Mike]

It really does not matter who is at fault. The so called citizens of Inglewood would be blaming the police no matter what. In their eyes, nobbody that lives in the great city of Inglwood is a bad person. I say disband the police department, and then let the so called citizens see how bad it gets then. I personally am really tired of hearing the same thing from all these outstanding community activists that say the police are horrible people, they need to be fired immediately. Apparently they don't know the law as well as they think they do.

[562vert]

i feel sorry for Mr. Wicks children, they have to grow up without a father. Mr Wicks should not be on this website, he should be at work. Mr. Wicks should have been a nobody to me since i live in long beach and never met the man. it is sad to see all of this going on .Placing officer Ragan back on the streets that quick was a terrible choice. Officer Ragan IS a huge liability for the city. TWO shootings now miilions of dollars will me spent (to settle) the civil lawsuits that will come from certainly the first shooting officer Ragan was involved in , and once the facts come out on this case possibly this one will in with a million dollar settlement. NO MONEY WILL FIX THE FAMILY"S pain cause death is final. LIKE I i always say since i found out about this website in march, WHO IS NEXT? AND IT IS SO TRUE ITS GOING TO BE ANOTHER SHOOTING DEATH OF AN OUSTANDING PERSON IN OUR LA COUNTY......WHO IS NEXT? that person is alive right now walkin talking workin whatever but he or she will have their picture in the papers and on tv cause the got kiiled

[Ruben Vives]

PMH,

The Beverly Hills shooting on July 12 was not included because the suspects did not die. The 18 officer-involved shootings that are listed here are fatal officer-involved shootings, meaning the suspect or officer died from gunfire.

-ruben vives / LAT

[ruben]

Frustrated (retired) Officer

The Public, and Me, are NOT saying ALL shootings are Bad, and neither is the LA Times, but when you have 18 OIS (Officer Involved Shootings) that resulted in death, and not to mention other ones that resulted in serious injury, you have to question some of them.

I grew up in East L.A and i see some of these cops they are Rogue cowboys who do have tempers (they are human) and sometimes their emotions get the better of them. Although you are absolutely right MOST of them are good honest working brave men and women and should be commended.

With all due respect sir, you if you are "Retired" I'm assuming your educated, wise, and seen alot. Let me ask you this, thinking outside the box, you mean to tell me there are approx. 30 -40 Officer Involved Shootings each year which the other party DIES and NOT 1 Officer is in jail for murder for them in the past 10 years (other than Rampart Scandal) and that ALL of them are JUSTIFIED?

Do Officers Not Have Tempers, Do they Not Get Angry, Are they Not Human, do they Not make Bad choices, do they Not have personal "issues" at home? I seen and met some of these guys and have Personal friends who are in the force and i EVEN ask them "How the hell did YOU get in" because some are straight Bullys.

All I'm saying is put some hidden cameras or Mic's on these guys and I'm sure the public (and I'm sure you know) and world will be SHOCKED at how some of these cops are just as bad as gangbangers when they patrol. So don't sit there and blame LA Times when these cops are in there homes on Paid leave while the Police Spokesperson explains to the public how it was "justified" AGAIN and how the victim did some sort of "suspicious" movement.

Cops are Human....

[Robert, L.A.]

A lot of issues are raised here in this loss of life. Applying niche classifications to make points doesn't really address what happened and whether it was legally justified. Shooting an apparently law-abiding resident by a law enforcement officer logically shouldn't happen.

Having a gun for self-protection is all that keeps you above water when an offensive life-threatening emergency arises and the police have not yet arrived. That is lawful and logical approach especially in a high crime area. It is the emergency tool you have until the professionals arrive. A late-night knock on the door is not a good sign anywhere. A fearful person can think "home invasion", and announcing "Police!" may be a ruse. What do you do at that moment? The police officer is left with only the deadly force choice when presented with the threat of deadly force if he's given up other force level options by the tactics s/he's used.

So what do you do? The facts of this event will have to be sorted out. Speculation is just that, making guesses. The dead man may have had a spotless character, but the decision to shoot rarely depends on that. The police officer is not looking to kill anyone each day, and "murder" -a criminally unlawful homicide- is even less a goal. Yet, they have to be ready to involve deadly force if needed, but not planning on elevating any encounter to that point. Coming back home safely after each shift is all that's expected. Anyone expects that. The agendas of people on any side are not served well by reaching conclusions until facts are established.

I don't know what training is involved HERE, but an officer taken off the street after shooting is routine procedure, not indicating fault of any kind. The responses and tactics leading up to this death must be examined to see IF there is a civil or criminal violation. The department standards will be evaluated to see, among other things, if they complied with professional standards in returning the officer to patrol duties and whether the department's training is itself up to current standards of the profession.

Police must be trained to include scenarios of lawful possession and use of firearms by residents for self-protection and their responses to prevent unnecessary shootings- and this is without saying this was or was not justified without more facts. Changes to training will not bring back this life, but only will help to manage situations as good as they can be handled, with thought given IN ADVANCE to possible events/encounters that police face so loss of life can be prevented if at all possible.

[Big Ben]

Shame on “Frustrated” (the retired cop) and his comments! I am an active African-America cop who knew Kevin Wicks well. This whole entire incident is TRAGIC!!!! Nevertheless, it is words from people like you who fuel the type of distrust that member’s of the minority community have for law enforcement. There are some damn good people who work for Inglewood PD. These people are of various ethnicities and come from all walks of life. They take pride in making Inglewood much safer than some of those cities it border’s, including Los Angeles!

Inglewood is not a war-zone nor is it anywhere near what you claim it to be. This city is populated by a racial mix of some of the finest people in Southern California. Who the hell do you think you are to diminish the reputation of Inglewood’s citizen’s and or belittle the reference to Kevin as a “Teddy Bear?” It’s obvious you don’t know Kevin or anyone of the fine resident’s of Inglewood. Therefore, you should keep your comments to yourself and tend to the issues which exist in your Utopia… we care about what goes on in our community and will work together to solve these issues. I assure you that Kevin’s passing will not be in vain!

[michael ryston]

My hat is off to Frustrated for presenting a rational perspective of what occurred. You hit the nail on the head when you said that "hating the cops is a sport."

I guess the one tool that people think the police have is the ability to read someones mind and come to an instant conclusion that the person pointing a gun at you means no harm, and therefor, it is appropriate to let your guard down.

Sorry, it definitely doesn't work that way.

[Mrs. Gatson]

The Inglewood Police Department is just sad. They are no more than criminals themselves in uniform with license to kill and assault and get away with it. My prayers go out to Mr. Wicks family. I have a personal experience with the IPD, excessive force was used on me after a family picnic in front of my child. Instead of them coming to find out what was the initial problem they immediately started to attack, which landed me in the hospital for a week. Are they really here to protect and serve or what???????? Obviously they need continuos training or else there will be more funerals and more tears to come.

[P.Law]

Police shoot people people shoot people but were asking that Police handle things better than we do. Oddly, all that great traning goes out the window when your faced with the possibility of being killed. In this case we don’t know what happened or who is wrong but the numbers and the history surely does taint the view.
Cops are like any other human group. Some great some scum and that goes for all human groups, from priests to presidents to teachers and doctors even garbagemen. The officer in question is in hot water cause he killed before under.. shakey circumstances. I submit he shouldn’t have been there at all. Guilty or not of the first incident, you don’t send your questionable officer out too soon to deal with the most hated and feared call of all time. DomVio calls are the worst. Someone else should have responded.
But all of that aside, Police of all colors and all locations are TRAINED to deal with blacks, men especially, differently. We are branded suspects before were even observed. They call it playing it safe and playing the odds. That suspision is further ingrained by the media always running full blast on showing and telling all the ills of any black suspect and always seeming to find any picture they can to plaster a horrid black image on screen, surely to follow by an interview with “ignant black bystander” to further paint blacks as the chosen dumb and bewildered dangerous species to be oppressed and controlled.
Both sides are trained to hate the other. Unless they need eachother. Sad, this isn’t going to end any time soon. There will be Kevin Wicks, Sean Bells, Timothy Stansburys and Rodney kings forever until, the black male life is valued and police aren’t allowed to operate above the law. “Were the police, we can do what the $$#% we want” , we gave a guy an Oscar for telling the truth.

[L.A. Native]

Before everyone jumps on the bandwagon and starts condemning the officers...wait and see what the investigation yields. The family of K.Wicks deserves to have justice and I hope and pray that they will receive it. It is ironic that people can get motivated when there is an officer involved shooting but yet accept passively the hundreds of individuals that are murdered every year in the City of L.A. I have been reading the homicide report for over a year and 90% of the shootings are NOT officer involved. Get real!!...gang bangers and thugs are destroying the communities and not the cops. Not to mention that criminals have gotten much violent placing the police and communities at the risk!

[Southoc]

If you neighborhood is a war zone it's your fault. Do something about it. You don't have to tolerate crime. Do neighborhood wathces. If you don't want the police involved, don't call 911.

[joel]

I love how Mr. Frustrated believes the police version of how the incident went down. Bias mich?

The reason that all of these shootings are questioned and attacked by the community is because of the simple fact that the dead black/brown men are unable to tell their side of the story. When was the last time you heard a cop say "well, he mouthed off to me and had a mean look on his face, so i put him down like a dog"? No, its always the textbook, IAD friendly, "the suspect reached in his waistband" or "made sharp threatening movements" or "pointed a knife or gun" or "suspect pulled shiny metal object and turned while being pursued" unverifiable claims.

If any of those things did happen, then the person was foolish, sick, or high enough to warrant a response by the police. But that is a REALLY REALLY big IF.

You think the LAPD or city govt wants to admit that their cop shot a minority dead? Do you see the size of lawsuits against govt entities in these scenarios?

As a brother in arms, fellow cop, do you want to see your partner, maybe your best buddy go down for something you would have done to, or do you cover up with the generic, muddy interpretation that is gauranteed to keep him safe? It only bites them when the dead guy isnt some cholo or tatt'd up thug. When its a guy with a job and family, the community can at least question what happened.

Please dude, take that logic somewhere else. If its righteous, its obvious. If its questionable, its never the officers fault. If you can find me one instance of a time when the city machine didnt back its own officer, I'd be impressed.

Out of the hundreds that occur every year, find me one where they hang the boy in blue out to dry. Good luck with all that.

Until then, respect the fact that for all the good cops out there, the people in poor communities have EVERY RIGHT to feel like there are some injustice in the world.

[Jay]

To the FRUSTRATED (RETIRE) OFFICER:
Is it because ur a retire cop you see it this way? You were not there just the same as me. But why is it aways the Cops word against the people. But yet you"ll claim people has rights (ANOTHER JOKE!!!!).

LATIMES, keep-up the good work by keeping the public posted. Do we not have a right to our own opinion FRUSTRATED OFFICER?

....and by the way F(R)O, Jay is not a HE!

[Teach]

I sure am glad I'm not a black man to be abused by police and society like that...Hey! Wait a minute! Ten of the eighteen killed by cops were Latinos. Damn! I'm a Latino.

Teach

[M. Thompson]

Kevin was a good guy. We attend jr. hi and high school together. He was a postal worker for 19 yrs. You will be missed.
God Bless you and your family in this time of need.

[Robert, L.A.]

I have to disagree with the statement about the training going out the window under stress. Proper training is what a person falls back into when a critical situation arises. There is a difference between real training and just being lectured to, which is not training. My point really goes to training so that police will act and react appropriately for the safety of themselves and the public.

Even when they do act appropriately, the criticism is abundant. The people selected for police work are chosen because they have been determined to be able to successfully perform those duties, usually screened through the academy process lasting many weeks. The City of L.A. has searched for officers and still has to work at just getting people to apply. The Mayor of L.A.- aside from being a phony and disingenuous in most of his words and deeds- wanted to get LAPD up to the 1,000-officer level. The problem is with recruitment more than having money available.

Other more distant cities might have an easier time attracting candidates and other cities have lateral transfers available for the greener pastures of their towns. Not everyone wants to do this job and not everyone who wants to do it is qualified. Who really would want a job where you could die anytime while just being on duty? And then you might not die but still make a mistake where your career is suddenly over. The quality of training, supervision and desire to do the job right will have the most influence of what kind of person is on the street.

Most people usually don’t know cops unless a friend or family member is one and most cops don’t spend a lot of time talking to non-cops unless it’s part of the job. Both police and non-police make assumptions about the other because of the distance between them. There’s some distrust of outsiders that I notice in most groups. Everyone nowadays seems to stay within and favor their own group but they do not know much or care about other groups. There’s always the anecdotal example to rely on to make a generalization, but that kind of picture will not be accurate for more than that situation. So we live on stereotypes and biased information.

I also disagree with the idea that any police officer that shoots someone should be restricted from normal duty for a year. That sounds like automatic punishment to me for what could be doing the job correctly. What would that accomplish if there was nothing done wrong? I can’t change anyone’s mind about my disagreements, but I do think that a little more thought about the problems and solutions could be useful for making changes for justified purposes.

Sometimes it looks like the only ones who know police more personally are the ones getting arrested or investigated for crimes since they see them so much. And for the police, most of their encounters are happening more often with people with rap sheets, so they get a biased view of things themselves. If you want to make programs, do something to get better communication happening. There is much gang-intervention-program spending- and with dubious results- but not much happens for spending on intervention programs that could get the common citizens and the police to understand each other better and identify the needs that are important for better relations with citizens and police. That might help more people who would like a better condition than what we have.

[snatchog1]

Foclipz, you state you could get killed by the police or a gangbanger. You sound silly with this, do you honestly think your chances of being killed by an officer is even close to your chances of being killed by some thug? If so I think either you are crazy or just a liar. Blacks kill a vast majority of blacks, officers are just trying to protect you from yourselves. L.a. times probably wont post this truthful comment though. And cindy states it will be cops' fault if there is another riot, GIVE ME A BRAKE! Cindy, wake up out of your dreamlike state.

[Robert, L.A.]

I have to disagree with the statement about the training going out the window under stress. Proper training is what a person falls back into when a critical situation arises. There is a difference between real training and just being lectured to, which is not training. My point really goes to training so that police will act and react appropriately for the safety of themselves and the public.

Even when they do act appropriately, the criticism is abundant. The people selected for police work are chosen because they have been determined to be able to successfully perform those duties, usually screened through the academy process lasting many weeks. The City of L.A. has searched for officers and still has to work at just getting people to apply. The Mayor of L.A.- aside from being a phony and disingenuous in most of his words and deeds- wanted to get LAPD up to the 1,000-officer level. The problem is with recruitment more than having money available.

Other more distant cities might have an easier time attracting candidates and other cities have lateral transfers available for the greener pastures of their towns. Not everyone wants to do this job and not everyone who wants to do it is qualified. Who really would want a job where you could die anytime while just being on duty? And then you might not die but still make a mistake where your career is suddenly over. The quality of training, supervision and desire to do the job right will have the most influence of what kind of person is on the street.

Most people usually don’t know cops unless a friend or family member is one and most cops don’t spend a lot of time talking to non-cops unless it’s part of the job. Both police and non-police make assumptions about the other because of the distance between them. There’s some distrust of outsiders that I notice in most groups. Everyone nowadays seems to stay within and favor their own group but they do not know much or care about other groups. There’s always the anecdotal example to rely on to make a generalization, but that kind of picture will not be accurate for more than that situation. So we live on stereotypes and biased information.

I also disagree with the idea that any police officer that shoots someone should be restricted from normal duty for a year. That sounds like automatic punishment to me for what could be doing the job correctly. What would that accomplish if there was nothing done wrong? I can’t change anyone’s mind about my disagreements, but I do think that a little more thought about the problems and solutions could be useful for making changes for justified purposes.

Sometimes it looks like the only ones who know police more personally are the ones getting arrested or investigated for crimes since they see them so much. And for the police, most of their encounters are happening more often with people with rap sheets, so they get a biased view of things themselves. If you want to make programs, do something to get better communication happening. There is much gang-intervention-program spending- and with dubious results- but not much happens for spending on intervention programs that could get the common citizens and the police to understand each other better and identify the needs that are important for better relations with citizens and police. That might help more people who would like a better condition than what we have.

[Frustrated (retired) Officer]

To Jay…
Yes it is because I was a police officer (for three decades) that I have the views I do. You are right that neither one of us was on Hillcrest when the shooting took place so we’ll probably never know exactly what happened that night. I don’t begrudge anyone for having a well informed opinion. I don’t know what your background is. I was in the business for 30 years. I chose to stay in the field because that’s where my heart was. Everybody tells the oral examiner when he’s trying to get hired that he wants to help people; I meant it. Just like some people have a calling to become a priest, or some other type of public service, my calling (since I was 7) was to become a police officer. I didn’t do it for the power. I didn’t do it because I could drive fast. I didn’t do it for any of those shallow reasons. I wanted to help you solve your problems. I was good at it. I still have many people that I forged relationships with that I keep in touch with to this day. They represent all ages and all races. I was a training officer for many years and I played an active role in training and mentoring new officers. I trained them to go the extra mile; to do follow-ups. To befriend the people we help. For my entire career I went out of my way to connect with kids so that I could play a positive role in their development. I wanted them to see a police officer up close and personal. I wanted them to see that we were human and approachable. It was not at all uncommon after a traffic stop or other field contact that I’d let the kids with the person I stopped come back and clime all over my car. I let them play with the PA system; say hi to mom or dad. I did this for thirty years. I took it upon my own initiative to visit all the local elementary schools because that’s where opinions about the police start. Most kids for their opinions about the police from TV & movies and from trash talk in the streets. I wanted them to hear it from a real police officer.
When you were scared and had to call the police I sat on the couch and tried to help. I’d call back or visit in the weeks after to make sure things were on the right track. I have a commendation folder 2 inches thick from children in all the schools I visited to federal judges and everyone in between.
This is my resume. It’s what I base my opinions on.
When journalists and others would go on ride alongs with me I tried to explain the way things really are, not the way a lot of people THING they are. Police officers are very simple. We tend to be a little black and white. Life to us isn’t that complicated. We see good people and bad people. We don’t see a black man or a brown man; we see a good man or a bad man. Somebody who is obeying the law or they aren’t. It’s as simple as that. In our opinion, you and your presence in life either makes the world a better place or it doesn’t. We work for the people whose presence does. The hard working, law abiding, civilized members of our society that deserve to live their lives free of violence and crime. We have no problem with people who stumble and screw up on occasion; who doesn’t. I have. We have a BIG problem with self centered, narcissistic, human predators that foul the quality of life for the good people.
If the list that the LA Times compiled has a disproportionate amount of dark skinned people on it, it just might be possible that dark skinned people commit a disproportionate amount of crime in relation to their overall numbers. I mean nothing racist by this. It’s just a statistical fact.
Now, for the point I really want to make. It hurts me and the majority of police officers like me who willingly risk our lives to help you and your community when we get so little support. Young people and the majority of people in the poorer neighborhoods have a predisposition to not trust the cops. If something happened, particularly any incident involving a person of color, it’s just one more example of the rogue out of control cowboy cops. It bothers me that this is the default position. Are there some police officers that might be in the wrong business, of course, but nowhere near the numbers that inner city anger would suggest. I wish you and everyone else out there that hate the cops would walk a mile in our shoes. I guarantee you it would turn your whole attitude around. Ride alongs are there for anyone who cares to go on one. Visit your local police department and go on one.
It’s frustrating that no one would ever tell your surgeon how to do an operation on you. We wouldn’t tell an engineer how to build something, but EVERYONE is an expert on how police work ought to be done. The police you see out on the street aren’t mythical figures. We are your boyfriends, your fathers, your brothers and sisters. We’re normal people just like you. We choose to be in what can often be a thankless business because we want to do public service. You can be part of the problem or part of the solution. The police try hard to create an environment where you can walk your dog at night without fear of being jacked or worrying whether or not your side of the block wears red or blue. It’s a violent, dangerous, often thankless business. We could use your support. We do what we do for you.
Not everybody is inclined to do public service. For those of you who aren’t, you can do something just as noble by supporting and defending those that do.

[Frustrated (retired) Officer]

Some of you people make me sick. You harp endlessly about how the PO-lice don’t care about the African American community yet you give absolutely no support or respect to the police officers that do.

We in law enforcement are not drafted. We choose where we want to work. Many choose to work in ghetto neighborhoods because that’s where the most problems are and where the most pressing need for a law enforcement presence is. That’s commendable.
These brave men and women, most of which have no connection to your “hoods” could have gone anywhere and gotten basically the same pay and benefits (and WAY less grief).

In most decent, law abiding neighborhoods the police are overwhelmingly supported. In these decent neighborhoods the parents (almost always two of them) keep control of their children and keep tabs on where they are at. These decent people do not tolerate their children running amok or tagging up the neighborhood with unsightly graffiti. I don’t care what some of my more “enlightened” friends might think, its NOT street art, its vandalism. It’s an unsightly blight on the neighborhood and the more of it you see the more of a s***thole the neighborhood is going to be. I don’t care that the ancient cave dwellers did it. We’re NOT cave dwellers anymore. We’ve (at least some of us) have evolved.

I’m not sure that inner city residents in our city are any more capable of living in harmony than the residents of Fallujah. Some people are just incapable of living like civilized human beings. It’s not white kids from the valley coming down to your neighborhoods to kill your “young black men”, it’s your own people doing it.

Instead of always blaming your protectors, blame yourselves. You raised these monsters whose sole ambition in life is to be a rapper or a basketball player.

I love these denizens of the inner city who run around blaming everyone (but themselves) for their problems instead of looking at the real problem, their own lives. It’s not the white man’s fault that your life is the way it is, it’s yours. It’s all about personal responsibility. Some people have it, some don’t. If you live in a crappy neighborhood, it's because you allow it. It’s YOUR neighborhood, instead of running the streets smoking crack, and committing crime (or just as bad, looking the other way and condoning those that do), do something about it. Quit whining and looking for others to do your speaking for you like LA’s Jesse Jackson, Naji Ali. These are race bating opportunists using YOU to further their careers. Make your own decisions.
I don’t work the ghetto because I don’t feel that there’s any hope for most of the people who live there. Just like in Iraq, some people are incapable of living normal, civilized lives. Some people are ungovernable. We live in the neighborhoods we deserve.

Quit blaming the police. The police aren’t the problem, YOU are. Support them. Honor them. Thank them when the opportunity presents itself. They WANT to help you, but you need to want to help yourselves first. If you went out of your way to just walk up to a police officer in your neighborhood and say hi you might be surprised to see that they aren’t the monsters that many of you make them out to be. If you don’t like their attitude, look in the mirror. It’s hard to be nice to people who hate your guts and look for every opportunity to bring you down.

[Tragicone]

My heart goes out this mans family. This should not have happened.but instead of placing blame lets look at the scenario someone knocking at your door late at night of course you are gonna be armed.someone raises a gun shots will be fired.Lets hope our neighborhoods get better so we wont have to live in fear of each other or the police.

[Southoc]

Be more active in your communities. Be more active in schools and with children. Be active in health care and birth control. You can't blame the police when some areas are no different from Iraq. Look at the story of the little girl who was shot. Someone has to regain control of these communities.

[jamie]

I am the family of Mr. Wicks older daughter, and at this point she is without a father, whether he died from any other form, she is without a dad. I can see from history that this Officer that shot seems to be trigger happy! There should be more training on Inglewood's part so we do not have fatherless or motherless children from what they call an ACCIDENT....ACCIDENTS are preventable, this incident was preventable!

i just ask for prayers for his daughters, and prayer for the families of those affected by useless, senseless acts of shootings or I say legal violence against a person.

[Pray for Change]

Officers cannot speak against officeers even if they are wrong. They risklosing tgheir career and livelyhood. Its sad the sysstem is flawed. Even the good cops get the bad cop rap.
http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=4875636

[Frustrated (retired) Officer]

Bravo Robert. Well said.

[Cesar Serrano]

I agree with The Frustrated Retired Police Officer. You make what you want of your neighborhood. If you turn your back on somebody commiting a crime in your nieghborhood, that means you except it and it is OK for thugs to come your hood and continue to do it. Look at all these unsolved murder's in Los Angeles that many of you know who did it but are unwilling to provide the info to convict . So when somebody in your close knit family get's killed and nobody steps up and says who did it. Don't you wish they stepped up and said something. It is a double edge sword that only needs a handle. Take pride in your community and get rid of the trash that lives there. Report them everytime they hang out or have loud parties. Gangsters bring crime, good citizens don't. I can have a party outside my house and hang out with all my friend's in front of our house. It's how you treat your community and how you base your life that will bring you happiness and security. Don't be afraid about living in an environment that can bring you joy and comfort. As it is, who doesn't want to live in harmony. Isn't that the reason we have POLICE OFFICER"S. Why should we have a military protecting us from terrorism. People start to think about your happiness. Remember you only get 1 life.

[are you kidding me?]

To frustrated (retired) officer: If anyone read both your posts, they would contend that you are 2 different people and it’s that type of schizophrenia that inner city residents are often exposed to, whether or not they are in the right.

Let me address the 2 parent homes first. There are 1 parent homes in the Valley and there are 2 parent homes in the inner city as well. There are children in the inner city who look up to and respect the police and commend the job they are doing. The mentality of not trusting the police has to do with the interactions one has had with the police, not the color of their skin or the area in which they live.

Many could rightfully wonder why certain officers would choose to patrol their communities, if they could work anywhere else, as you have stated. The fact of the matter is that most officers that choose to work within the inner city do so out of greed because they work more hours and earn more money. It isn’t an affinity to the people as you would like the readers on this blog to believe. Think again. Many of the officers that work these communities are as prejudiced and racist as can be and they use these communities to vent.

Again, the programs offered in the decent, law-abiding neighborhoods are greater than the near zero programs offered in the inner city and the funding for programs within the inner city are always the first to be cut. How difficult would it be to keep tabs on a youngster whose day is inundated with one activity after another to occupy his time? No very difficult.

It’s not surprising that in your summation you would mention race over and over again and liken the people within these communities as ungovernable and hopeless in one breath but turn right around and write about the long lasting relationships you have formed. Clear cut case of mental illness, if you ask me. But no, you aren't being racist!

It is the mindset of your kind and that is why the African Americans within that community don’t have respect or trust for you. You bring a real supremacy mindset when you say that we live in the neighborhoods we deserve. Does a family working 12 hours a day and still barely living above the level of poverty deserve to live in a gang infested community because they cannot afford to move out of it, even as their children are getting good grades in preparation for college?

Does a single father who is doing everything that he can to actively engage his 2 sons in music, writing and sports programs but whose rent is keeping him from saving enough money to move to another location, deserve to live there and possibly lose his sons? Who are you to say who deserves to live anywhere? That is the most blatant statement of racism I have ever heard but no, you are not a racist!

You are a sob and I don’t mean tears! You are the reason why the community is hesitant about trusting the men in blue. Your mindset is the predominant way most who choose to work in the inner city think, and the residents know this. You are no more a protector to the residents there than the gangbangers. They not only have to be their guard against them, but you as well.

And these residents don’t need Jesse Jackson or Najee Ali to back them. What they need is a police department that will back their constructive actions and not turn them over to gangbangers as snitches after they have stood up and spoke up. But you probably don’t know anything about police officers fanning feuds between residents and murderers in the inner city, do you?

A resident who knows and see both sides

[Big E]

"Are you kidding me", thank you for response. I wrote something similiar but a bit harsher and it was not posted by this blog. Not the first time its happened...I honestly believe that they may need a new person in charge of this blog because the censors here are very biased.

I'd like to ask Mr. retired officer how come he convienently fails to mention in his extensive posts Officer Regans prior shooting of an unarmed man in a vehicle, who he shot through his own windshield because he "heard" gunshots. Is this a new policy that police officers are no allowed to shoot at individuals simply because they hear gunshots and see people fleeing
Or maybe that only applies to young black men.

This officer was placed back on the streets, yet the public has not yet heard anything about the "investigation". Perhaps the IPD thought that enough time had passed (less than 2 months) and that the public would forget about the unjustified death of a 19 year old black male on Mother's Day.

Although I've written this I don't expect it to be posted due to the obvious bias of this blog. Suprise me please

[hoodteacher]

I have tried posting this three times now, but it will not seem to go through - I wanted to express to anyone defending the police that the police are responsible for about half the homicides in Inglewood this year. There is no way to defend these summary executions. I saw the that Maxine Waters wants to have the Inglewood PD investigated. I am not convinced that this will change anything. But at least someone is speaking up. I just can't see how anyone could defend these murderers.

[snatchog]

This is in response to "are you kidding me". How can you blame "retired officer" for your crummy hood and it's inhabitants bad outlook? People like you amaze me with your use of the word "racist", that word is so worn out that it no longer holds any weight or has any meaning.

[Jay]

LA Times,

I posted a comment here a couple of weeks ago responding back to Frustrated (retired) Officer, letting him know that he did not have to write a book about his life and that I care less about who he is and what he did in the pass and that he should be relaxing because he's retired and that I don't need to go back-n-forth with him.

What happen to the posting?