Staff Protests After LA Deputy Shoots Patient Inside Torrance Hospital

TORRANCE (CBSLA) – A rally took place Tuesday outside Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Torrance following the shooting of a patient by a Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputy inside the hospital last week.

Dozens of protesters, many of them hospital staff angry over the shooting, gathered outside the hospital in a show of solidarity for patient care and calling for urgent measure to ensure health and safety.

They held signs that said "remove guns from hospitals," "policy change now" and "done with guns." They chanted "no guns at Harbor."

"And it's not just about them shooting people, it's about them undermining doctors' health and practice," one protester told CBSLA. "It's about them undermining treatment protocols."

Late on the night of Oct. 6, the patient was shot by a deputy inside the hospital, which is located at 1000 W. Carson St.

The deputy was there as part of a security detail for a different patient.

The situation began when the patient began acting erratically, taking a piece of medical equipment, trying to destroy a computer and then trying to smash a fourth-floor window, sheriff's Lt. Derrick Alfred told CBSLA at the time.

When the patient entered a private room where another patient was being guarded by a deputy and allegedly tried to attack that patient, he was shot, according to a statement issued by the hospital.

The patient was critically wounded and underwent surgery at the hospital.

The hospital clarified Tuesday that the deputy who fired his weapon was not a member of the hospital-based sheriff's unit, but was providing security for the private room patient.

However, it was not immediately clear whether he was on duty at the time.

Multiple investigations into the incident are underway, the hospital said. L.A. County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas has proposed a motion calling on the county's Office of Inspector General to investigate, while the hospital is looking at how to best manage security services.

(© Copyright 2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)