LA sheriff probes police shooting of stabbing suspect in wheelchair
Family and friends of Anthony Lowe hold a news conference to demand an investigation into his death outside of the Huntington Park Police Department in Huntington Park, California, on January 30, 2023. – Lowe was reportedly in a wheelchair with both legs amputated at the knees and undergoing a mental health crisis when he was shot to death by Huntington Park police on January 26, 2023. (Photo by Patrick T. FALLON / AFP) (Photo by PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images)
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HUNTINGTON PARK, Calif. (NewsNation) — A 36-year-old double amputee allegedly waving a butcher’s knife was fatally shot by an officer after trying to evade police. Officials say the man using a wheelchair recently stabbed another man in Huntington Park.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is assisting the Huntington Park Police Department with an investigation after at least one HPPD officer fatally shot Anthony Lowe, a Black man who had recently lost both his legs in another altercation with law enforcement in Texas the year before, NewsNation affiliate KTLA reported.
Police received and responded to a call about a man who had been stabbed with a 12-inch butcher knife by a man in a wheelchair, the LASD said in a news release.
Los Angeles County Sheriff’s homicide unit Lt. Hugo Reynaga said the 46-year-old stabbing victim was stable in the hospital, NBC News reported.
The Sheriff’s Department said that as police approached Lowe, he pulled out the butcher knife and threatened officers, then threw the knife at them.
The officers used a stun gun on him and the man again tried to throw the knife, “at which time an officer-involved shooting occurred,” the statement said. The man, later identified as Anthony Lowe, was shot in the upper torso and died at the scene.
Police recovered the butcher knife at the scene, the press release said.
Lowe’s family demanded justice for his death, stating that excessive force was used though unwarranted, NBC News reported.
“I just want the truth, nothing but the truth and justice for my son. My son was murdered,” Lowe’s mother, Dorothy Lowe, said during a news conference.
His family said the Lowe had been struggling emotionally after he lost his limbs, KTLA reported.
“We just don’t understand. The police are here to protect and serve and to help our community, and yet they’re hurting individuals in wheelchairs,” Lowe’s cousin Jonathan Longmire said.
Lowe’s family and community activists believe police shot him in the back and they believe security video from a business at the scene can prove it. They say the police department is withholding information from them, WSAZ reported.
“Anthony was brutally executed by Huntington Park Police officers last Thursday in an attack that was vicious and cowardly,” said Cliff Smith, an organizer with the Coalition for Community Control Over the Police.
Video shared on Twitter showed the moments leading up to the deadly shooting, and while several gunshots can be heard, the actual shooting is blocked on the video by several vehicles.
The HPPD referred inquiries to the sheriff’s department, which is investigating the shooting. Sheriff’s officials didn’t have additional details on the investigation on Wednesday. The sheriff’s department typically investigates law enforcement shootings in the county to determine if officers should face discipline.
CNN reported that the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office said they will also conduct a review once the police department’s investigation is complete.
The Associated Press and NewsNation affiliate KTLA’s Cameron Kiszla, Travis Schlepp and Mary Beth McDade contributed to this report.
People gather to seek justice and to demand an investigation into the death of Anthony Lowe Jr, a disabled double amputee who was shot and killed by police in Huntington Park during their response to a report of a stabbing, outside of the Huntington Park Police Department in Huntington Park, California on January 30, 2023. – Lowe was reportedly in a wheelchair with both legs amputated at the knees and undergoing a mental health crisis when he was shot to death by Huntington Park police on January 26, 2023. (Photo by Patrick T. FALLON / AFP) (Photo by PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images) 
Signage is displayed outside the Huntington Park Police Department, where family and friends of Anthony Lowe hold a news conference to demand an investigation into his death outside of the Huntington Park Police Department in Huntington Park, California, on January 30, 2023. – Lowe was reportedly in a wheelchair with both legs amputated at the knees and undergoing a mental health crisis when he was shot to death by Huntington Park police on January 26, 2023. (Photo by Patrick T. FALLON / AFP) (Photo by PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images) 
Family and friends of Anthony Lowe hold a news conference to demand an investigation into his death outside of the Huntington Park Police Department in Huntington Park, California, on January 30, 2023. – Lowe was reportedly in a wheelchair with both legs amputated at the knees and undergoing a mental health crisis when he was shot to death by Huntington Park police on January 26, 2023. (Photo by Patrick T. FALLON / AFP) (Photo by PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images) 
Family and friends of Anthony Lowe hold a news conference to demand an investigation into his death outside of the Huntington Park Police Department in Huntington Park, California, on January 30, 2023. – Lowe was reportedly in a wheelchair with both legs amputated at the knees and undergoing a mental health crisis when he was shot to death by Huntington Park police on January 26, 2023. (Photo by Patrick T. FALLON / AFP) (Photo by PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images)
