LA Police Commission: Venice Homeless Man's Shooting Unjustified

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A police officer who shot and killed an unarmed homeless man near the Venice boardwalk last year violated departmental policy, the Police Commission ruled Tuesday.

The civilian panel concluded that Officer Clifford Proctor wasn't justified in shooting Brendon Glenn twice in the back as Glenn, 29, was on the ground last May 5.

The officers tried to detain Glenn after reports that he had been harassing people and they saw him struggling with a bar bouncer, police said.

Proctor has said he shot after Glenn grabbed his partner's holster but video from the bar security camera contradicted the account, Chief Charlie Beck said in a report to the commission.

Investigators concluded that Glenn was on his stomach trying to push himself up when Proctor shot him.

A call to Proctor's attorney, Lawrence Hanna, seeking comment wasn't immediately returned.

Beck has recommended the officer face criminal charges. It is the first time Beck has done so in connection with more than 100 fatal police shootings.

Glenn's family has sued over the death in state and federal courts. The suits allege that Glenn was leaving when officers grabbed him without justification.

The suits also contend that the police chief failed to adequately discipline his officers, "creating a culture of impunity within the LAPD that encourages such violence and incidents of unreasonable force against the public."

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