Long Beach sees upswing in officer-involved shootings

Long Beach sees upswing in officer-involved shootings
Police have shot three people this week alone and nine so far this year. Officials say the incidents involved violent suspects who failed to comply with commands or threatened officers with weapons.
By Andrew Blankstein
May 29, 2009
Long Beach police are grappling with a string of officer-involved shootings in recent months, including three this week alone.

Five people were injured in officer-involved shootings during a seven-hour period from Wednesday afternoon to early Thursday, authorities said. One of the victims was a police officer apparently struck by "friendly fire."

So far this year, Long Beach police officers have shot nine people. By comparison, the Los Angeles Police Department -- with 10 times more officers -- reported nine officer-involved shootings, and the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department -- also about 10 times as large -- reported 10 such shootings.

Long Beach police officials acknowledged it was an unusual number for a short period but noted the circumstances were different in each case and involved violent suspects who failed to comply with commands or threatened officers with weapons.

"It's hard to predict when we have these clusters," said department spokeswoman Jackie Bezart. "We are doing the best we can to maintain order like we always do and maintain safety for the citizens like we always do."


Long Beach has seen an increase in homicides so far this year, recording 10 as of May 1 compared to only two during the same period in 2008. But serious crimes overall in the city of 460,000 residents are up more modestly, about 2%.
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Long Beach sees upswing in officer-involved shootings