An expert on police behavior is questioning the legality of an officer-involved shooting that occurred in downtown San Diego late last month.
The San Diego Police Department released footage last week of an officer shooting and killing a teenager near the Santa Fe Depot transit stop on Jan. 28.
The video can be found here.
“In my view, there are serious questions as to whether this shooting was legally justified,” said Philip Stinson, professor of criminal justice at Bowling Green State University in Ohio.
The shooting followed a complicated series of events.
Security camera footage shows several people standing on the Santa Fe Depot trolley platform around 8:50 p.m. on that Tuesday. After a brief exchange, one of them pulled a gun and started shooting.
The teenager being shot at took off running down a corridor.
San Diego Police officer Daniel Gold was nearby responding to an unrelated call. Body camera video shows he started running toward the trolley platform when he heard gunfire. Radio traffic also reported shots fired.
Seconds later, Gold and the fleeing teenager nearly collided as the teenager came around a corner along Kettner Boulevard.
“Whoa,” Gold shouted and then immediately shot the teenager.
As the teenager screamed and staggered into the street, Gold called out, “San Diego Police.”
As the teenager lay in the street, officers providing aid found a gun under his clothes, according to footage released by SDPD. The teenager later died from the gunshot wound.
Stinson suggested the officer could not have known the teenager had a gun under his clothing, since the exchange happened so quickly.
“It was so fast, I don't know that the officer could have made a determination of an imminent threat,” he said. “Sometimes police officers make the wrong split-second decision and it's going to be interesting to see how the investigation unfolds.”
Following standard protocol, the shooting is under investigation by the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office and the District Attorney’s Office will determine if the officer faces any criminal liability
In a statement, San Diego Police Chief Scott Wahl acknowledged that “it’s never easy to watch this kind of footage.”
“Our department remains committed to transparency and ensuring a fair, thorough, independent investigation,” he said.
The FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office will also monitor the investigation, which is also standard procedure, according to SDPD spokesperson Lt. Daniel Meyer.
