California police officers gunned down a double amputee on Thursday as he tried to clamber away from them on his stumps after leaping out of his wheelchair. The three cops from Huntington Park Police Department were filmed firing at least eight shots at Anthony Lowe Jr., a 36-year-old father-of-two. According to two police officers, Lowe Jr had just stabbed someone unprovoked.
He then turned and tried to flee the scene, clutching a large butcher’s knife in one hand.
A second police car arrived, from which a third cop emerged. First, they tased him – which was “ineffective”, according to a police press release.
Within 15 seconds of the third officer arriving, they fired multiple shots, shooting Lowe in the upper torso.
Once he was on the ground lying on his stomach, they placed him in handcuffs.
READ MORE: Tyre Nichols death sees emergency medical responders fired as they ‘didn’t do anything’
Lowe’s family and members of the Coalition for Community Control Over the Police held a news conference in front of the Huntington Park Police Department Monday, condemning the shooting as another example of police brutality.
The officers involved have not yet been named.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is now heading up the investigation into the officer-involved shooting.
The police officers who fired are now on paid, administrative leave, which is standard operating protocol.
The incident comes three weeks after Tyre Nichols was beaten to death by multiple police officers in Memphis, Tennessee.
Five Black officers were fired last week and charged with second-degree murder and other offenses in Nichols’ Jan. 7 beating and death three days later.
Two more Memphis police officers were disciplined and three emergency responders fired in connection with Nichols’ death, officials said Monday.
Video of the beating, which was released publicly last week, shows that many more people failed to help Nichols beyond the five officers charged in his death.
Memphis Police Department officers used a stun gun, a baton and their fists as they pummeled Nichols during the nighttime arrest.
Video shows Nichols running away from officers toward his house after he was pulled over on suspicion of reckless driving. The video footage released Friday shows the 29-year-old father calling for his mother and struggling with his injuries as he sits helpless on the pavement.
The five officers chatted and milled about for several minutes as Nichols remained on the ground, but there were other authorities on the scene. Two Shelby County sheriff’s deputies also have been suspended without pay while their conduct is investigated.
Express.co.uk has reached out to Huntington Park Police Department for comment.
