Officer Trying To Assist In Crash Opens Fire On Driver Of Stolen Car In Garden Grove
GARDEN GROVE (CBSLA) — A suspect was killed Wednesday after a traffic collision investigation in Garden Grove erupted into an officer-involved shooting.
An officer was headed back to his station when he saw a car had crashed into a pole at about 1:30 a.m. on Harbor Boulevard and Trask Avenue, underneath the 22 Freeway, in Garden Grove, according to police.
The officer pulled over and tried to help the driver, who got out and started with the officer, according to Garden Grove police. During the struggle, the officer pulled out his weapon and opened fire.
Both the suspect and the officer were taken to a hospital, where the suspect was pronounced dead. His name has not been released.
The officer suffered a non-life threatening injury, according to police. He was confirmed to be wearing a body cam and had a camera also recording in his squad car.
The 2017 Dodge Challenger that the suspect was driving was discovered to be reported stolen out of a car dealership in Santa Ana, police said. The suspect was not believed to be armed.
Will King said he witnessed the entire incident from crash to struggle to shooting, but says he thought the officer got control of the situation and doesn't know how the suspect ended up dead.
"They went around the corner, and he had him at gunpoint either on the ground, in front of the cop car -- I didn't see him in the cop car," King said. "And he shot twice."
The intersection of Harbor and Trask was shut down, and the 22 Freeways off-ramps to Harbor Boulevard were also closed during the shooting investigation.
