Newly released dash-camera video shows a Los Angeles Police Department officer driving down Century Boulevard in Watts moments before striking a Long Beach man crossing the road.
The deadly crash, which happened Dec. 8, threw the pedestrian several yards, and the officer quickly made a call for help.
“Let me get a (rescue ambulance) for a male, not conscious, not breathing,” the officer can be heard saying before getting out of the car and performing chest compressions on the pedestrian.
The man, whom police identified as 26-year-old Luis Espinoza of Long Beach, later died at the hospital from his injuries, authorities said.
As is typical, the LAPD says it’s investigating to see if the officer’s actions were appropriate.
Shortly after the crash, LAPD Chief Michel Moore said in a press release that he had “very serious concerns regarding the officer’s driving leading up to the collision.”
He said an internal affairs investigation was also underway.
By the LAPD’s account in the new video released Monday, the officer was driving a marked police vehicle eastbound on Century Boulevard with the vehicle’s emergency lights and siren activated.
As the officer approached a green light on McKinley Avenue, he struck Espinoza, who was crossing Century Boulevard a few dozen feet outside of a marked crosswalk.
Beyond those facts, the LAPD did not say what the investigation has found so far, with LAPD Capt. Kelly Muñiz saying they will not “draw any conclusions about whether the officer acted consistent with our policies and the law until all the facts are known and the investigation is complete.”
Muñiz later added that investigators have presented a case against the officer to the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office for filing consideration. Police did not say what charges are being considered, and the DA’s office did not immediately respond to questions from the Long Beach Post.