Officer involved in Westlake shooting had 2 previous use-of-force incidents

LAPD Officer Frank Hernandez, the 13-year department veteran who shot and killed Manuel Jamines, a death that has sparked three days of violent protests in the Westlake district, has been involved in two previous shootings while on duty, according to LAPD officials and records.

On Sunday, authorities said, Jamines was threatening passers-by with a knife, and when confronted by three officers, ignored their orders to drop the weapon. Hernandez fired two rounds when Jamines came at him with the knife raised over his head, officials have said.

Citing privacy laws, Police Chief Charlie Beck declined to discuss the past shootings or any details of Hernandez’s personnel file. He voiced support for Hernandez, however, and indicated that the 39-year-old officer’s performance should not come under suspicion because of the multiple shootings.

“If we had any concerns about his ability to use deadly force, he wouldn’t be out in the field,” Beck said in an interview Wednesday. “Each of these [shootings] need to be looked at in their individual contexts.”

In the previous shootings, Hernandez was found by LAPD officials and the agency’s oversight board to have acted within the department’s policies on the use of deadly force, according to LAPD sources who spoke on the condition that their names not be used because of privacy laws.

Hernandez first used his handgun in November 1999, his third year on the force. While assigned to the department’s Southwest Division, he and his partner responded to a robbery call and tracked the female suspect into the backyard of a home, according to an account released at the time by the department.

The pair opened fire when the woman allegedly pointed a handgun at them, according to the account. She fell to the ground, but allegedly reached for her weapon and ignored Hernandez’s orders to stop, causing him to shoot her again. A loaded semiautomatic handgun was recovered at the scene, according to the department’s account. At the time, the woman was listed in stable condition.

Almost a decade later, in December 2008, Hernandez and a different partner were helping to search for assault suspects in the LAPD’s Rampart Division. They approached an 18-year-old man they suspected of being involved in the assault, according to a department account of the incident released at the time. The man tried to flee, then pointed a gun at the officers, the account said. Hernandez shot the man once, wounding him.

Hernandez remains ineligible for patrol assignments for the time being, police officials said. An officer involved in a shooting is kept off the streets until the chief has received a formal briefing on the incident and the officer is cleared by a department psychologist to return to full duty.

-- Joel Rubin

Comments

[kuruc]

eh, these are police officers dealing with CRIMINALS! they are not effeminates like the politicians.

[crppplll]

If these officers felt threatened why did only one of them fire?

[William in Ohio]

The man had a knife and was under the influence of alcohol and endangering passers-by. He was warned in two languages, refused to drop his weapon and then advanced on the officers.
Don't be in such a rush to crucify Mr.Hernandez!

[annaD]

What exactly is the point of this story? Inflammatory headlines to rile up people who won't bother to read the facts? A 'killer cop' because he did't end up as the guest of honor at his own wake? You try to infer that the cop as a trigger happy gring, except the it turns out that he's the not that Pantone number. The headlines of course don't say that over more than a decade, twice someone tried to shoot and kill him, that he defended himself and WOUNDED the perps instead of killing them.
But of course once you've got people riled up, whose going to read the fine print.

[i heart LA...not LAPD or LA Mayor or LA Politicians]

where's the L.A. mayor? Maybe at the Sparks game this past 3 days?

[Rob]

He sounds like a outstanding officer who is in 3rd good shooting. I hope he gets the medal of valor for his efforts.

[latimesreader]

He sounds like a good cop. Guns and knifes in his direction = lead in your direction.

[keith j]

This is the kind of officer i want patroling my neighborhood. He protects us against aprmed criminals!

[Bob Skinner]

A man or woman is hired to protect and serve the people. The job requires them to deal with scumbags on a regular bases, what are the odds they have had to use force to protected others?

[What the hell]

It sickens me to know that people are looking to blame the officer for what happened. He did his job and protected many innocent people.

We have a disturbed society that is willing to defend a criminal and persecute a peace officer doing their job.

[Jazz]

I strongly disagree with the chief on this issue, the main reason they have this fool in the field is because he is quick to shoot. LAPD does not question his tactics because they use his tactics, he is considered a designated shooter.

[mark]

I cannot understand why the public has had trouble understanding the facts here: "Hernandez fired two rounds when Jamines came at him with the knife raised over his head, officials have said."

Unless the facts are wrong, it seems reasonable that the officer protected himself from being attacked with a knife.

Case closed!

[Frink Stink]

What I'm gathering from this article is that this guy is doing his job against increasingly brazen criminals with no respect for law enforcement. Nice to see his aim is improving.

[Sheriff Apario]

Where is Sheriff Apario,

How many of those people are illegal?

They should of brought in ICE during the meeting.

[Sheriff Apario]

Where is Sheriff Apario,

How many of those people are illegal?

They should of brought in ICE during the meeting.

[John]

According to the logic used by Sheriff Lee Baca regarding the Medical Marijuana business, Police are associated with violent crime and therefore should be outlawed.

[Tery]

Is Officer Hernandez to give this criminal a test to determine he's drunk and call for every language interpreter before shooting him? Really! He is there to protect and serve the community! Of course, nobody cares to see that a pregnant woman's life was saved. There is a lot of support and prayers for Hernandez despite all the thugs protesting!

[Tery]

Is Officer Hernandez to give this criminal a test to determine he's drunk and call for every language interpreter before shooting him? Really! He is there to protect and serve the community! Of course, nobody cares to see that a pregnant woman's life was saved. There is a lot of support and prayers for Hernandez despite all the thugs protesting!

[kgoddess]

And this thug is still on the LAPD, working out of Rampart Division, just one of the biggest, most visious gangs in the world. OF COURSE he's still on the street...legal thugs that's all these pigs are. And oh yes, I speak from personal experience, having lived very near where the shooting took place for 17 years...& before anybody asks, I am a white female, a 4th generation citizen & employed. LAPD HAS TAUGHT ME OME THING VERY WELL...THEY HAVE TAUGHT ME TO FEAR & HATE COPS, ESPECIALLY LAPD.

[Evelyn Aguilera]

Job well done Officer Hernandez! The streets are safer without criminals like Jamines out there. The media definitely wants to get everyone riled up. They love to have more drama to report. The incident is quite simple--Jamines threatened Frank's life, and he had no choice but to protect himself. Now the poor officer has to deal with all the repercussions of taking a life, and on top of that, all the public scrutiny. Unbelievable???

[FED UP in Los Angeles]

A drunken, threatening, criminal 'immigrant' is off the streets and can no longer terrorize pregnant women and children.

Job well done, Officer Hernandez, please keep up the good work. The legal taxpaying citizens of Los Angeles stand behind you and appreciate the your hard work and dedication in a very tough job.

[Ramon De La Deuce]

The media always fails to acknowledge the Suspect's actions dictate how the Police Officers will handle them. Why not write stories about how the suspects behavior and actions cause the Police to do their job and take them out if needed. Officers show a lot of restraint when dealing with unpredictable and deadly people. If these suspects are willing to kill a Police Officer than they will attack anyone. Media should recognize and write about Officers daily bravery and duty when serving the public. Officers risk their lives to protect complete strangers every day. Some of those strangers even Hate the Police!

In this case, the illegal alien was a neighborhood nuisance who did nothing positive for himself or his so called children. By the way he abandon his children in Guatemala (some father). This man sat on the street corner drinking himself to a slop everyday while threatening passerby pedestrians including women and children with knives. I don't see why this is even "Headline News." Officers acted accordingly and they rid the neighborhood from this pile of Garbage! I wonder how the Guatemala Police Department would have handled him and this "No Job IDIOT" Protesters?