Los Angeles Police Officer Sharlton Wampler said he was in a life-and-death struggle with Ezell Ford, wrestling over the officer’s gun on a summer evening last year. Fearing Ford would get control of the weapon, Wampler pulled out a backup gun from beneath his uniform and fired a fatal shot into his back.
The account prompted Chief Charlie Beck to conclude Wampler was justified in opening fire.
But on Tuesday, the L.A. Police Commission rejected Beck’s finding, ruling that Wampler’s use of deadly force violated LAPD policy.
Read more in the Los Angeles Times.