Family of mentally ill man shot dead by LAPD in Koreatown demands answers

Michelle De Pacina
·2 min read

[Source]

The family of Yong Yang, a man fatally shot by the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) in Koreatown last week, is speaking out and demanding answers from the city.

Key points:

  • Yang, 40, was killed on May 2 after allegedly wielding a kitchen knife toward officers responding to reports of a mental health episode.

  • However, Myung Sook, Yang's mother, questions the events leading to her son's death, criticizing the involvement of police after they sought mental health assistance.

The details:

  • The shooting occurred after 11 a.m. at an apartment in the 400 block of South Gramercy Place after Yang’s parents called the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health (DMH) to the scene due to the erratic behavior of their son, who suffers from bipolar disorder and schizoaffective disorder.

  • DMH officials had initiated paperwork to place Yang under a 72-hour mental evaluation hold before LAPD officers were called. A DMH ambulance was en route to transfer him to a nearby medical facility. Upon police arrival, they coordinated with DMH officials and requested additional units and supervision.

  • Despite attempts to communicate with Yang to leave the residence, he refused. Officers reportedly accessed the home with a key, where they encountered Yang holding an 11-inch knife.

  • “Moments later, Yang advanced toward the officers and an officer-involved shooting occurred,” the LAPD statement reads. “Yang was struck by gunfire, dropped the knife, and was taken into custody without further incident.”

  • Yang was later pronounced dead by paramedics. No other injuries were reported.

The investigation:

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  • Yang's family asserts that the deadly shooting was unjustified. They argue that nine officers responded using a "military-style maneuver," as stated by their attorney, Robert Sheahen.

  • “How could this have happened to my beautiful boy?” Myung Sook said, according to KTLA. “We tried to do everything right to get him help. We called the Department of Mental Health and instead of helping him, they invited police into our home, and they shot and killed him.”

  • The Force Investigation Division of the LAPD is currently investigating the incident.

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