The California Department of Justice has taken over a Culver City investigation into the fatal police shooting of an unarmed suspect.
The incident occurred at about 12:16 a.m. on Dec. 18 in Culver City after a chase that took officers through several neighboring communities including Santa Monica.
According to the Culver City Police Department, officers were called to the 3800 block of College Ave. for a report of a husband threatening his wife with a handgun.
The suspect fled the scene and after driving through Hollywood and Santa Monica, he returned to Culver City to eventually crash near the intersection of Culver Blvd. and Cardiff Ave. After a brief foot chase, officers opened fire and killed the man.
The department did not provide details on what prompted the shooting, how many officers fired and how many shots were fired. It is unclear what happened to the handgun the suspect was holding.
A statement said the California Department of Justice will investigate. The department investigates police encounters that result in the death of an unarmed civilian.
VENICE Arrest
A day later, LAPD arrested a man wanted for Assault with a Deadly Weapon in Venice.
The suspect in that case was wanted in connection with a Dec. 13 shooting in the vicinity of Lincoln Blvd. and Palms.
Following a tip by a community member that the suspect was staying at a hotel in Venice, LAPD investigators followed up and located the man. That suspect attempted to flee but was taken into custody after a short foot pursuit and a minor use of force incident.
That suspect is being held pending charges.
SWAT responds to Sword call
On Monday, large numbers of LAPD officers swarmed a building in Venice for calls of a man with a sword.
Multiple LAPD vehicles passed through Santa Monica Monday afternoon with lights and sirens on their way to a home near Abbot Kinney Blvd. The initial call came in as a burglary suspect in a partially boarded up building and officers eventually fired tear gas into broken widows to flush out the suspect.
The suspect was arrested shortly after the gas was deployed and officers found a machete at the location.
The Westside Current contributed to this report.
