State DOJ to investigate after LBPD fatally shot home-invasion suspect accused of having replica firearm

California Attorney General Rob Bonta today said his office will investigate after Long Beach police fatally shot a home-invasion suspect the LBPD says had a replica firearm.

Under a law passed in 2020 , the State Attorney General is required to investigate any time police officers fatally shoot someone who wasn’t armed with a deadly weapon.

“Historically, these critical incidents in California had been primarily handled by local law enforcement agencies and the state’s 58 district attorneys,” Bonta’s office said.

Having the state handle these investigations instead is “an important tool to directly help build and maintain trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve by creating a mandate for an independent, statewide prosecutor,” according to the state DOJ’s office.

In this case, Long Beach police have said they believed the man was armed with a real firearm.

Officers responded around 8:35 p.m. Friday to a home in the 6800 block of Cerritos Avenue in North Long Beach after getting a report that there was someone inside with a gun.

Upon their arrival, they learned a home invasion robbery was in progress and the suspect was still in the yard of the house, according to the Long Beach Police Department.

Police said officers surrounded the home and made contact with the man, who they saw was armed with a firearm. As the officers at the scene engaged in verbal de-escalation for over an hour with the suspect, a SWAT team was called to the scene and was preparing to deploy when the shooting occurred, the department said.

The suspect was struck once in the upper body and officers immediately rendered aid to him, according to the LBPD. Long Beach Fire Department paramedics treated the suspect at the scene and subsequently took him to a hospital, where he died from his injuries, authorities said.

Police said a replica gun was recovered at the scene and no officers were injured in the shooting.

Long Beach police said officers were wearing body cameras during the incident, and the department will release footage it to the public as required by state law.

The State DOJ said it would review the case to determine exactly what happened and decide whether or not officers followed the law and whether the LBPD should change its practices or policies.

City News Service and editor Jeremiah Dobruck contributed to this report.

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