Last week, something horrible happened at a department store in Los Angeles. The LAPD were called to the scene of a store where a man was beating random people.
He was only carrying a bike lock and hitting people with it, but the police scoured the shop, following a bloody trail until opening fire on the suspect.
Tragically, one bullet went through the wall of a dressing room behind the suspect where a screaming mother held her dying 14-year-old daughter in her arms, thanks to the trigger-happy LAPD.
Now, people want answers.
Investigation Underway
Yesterday, the LAPD put up a video of what happened.
It shows body cam footage of the police going through the store and following the suspect. The LAPD has a rule to put out any body cam footage from an officer-involved shooting within 45 days after it happens.
The video shows the police going in as a team to the shop before finding a woman on the floor bleeding. They saw the suspect at the end of the aisle and opened fire on him, striking him.
The suspect, Daniel Lopez, fell to the ground after being shot, but then, screams came from behind him. As the video shows, officers begin looking behind the wall to find out what is going on, which is when they saw a mother cradling her 14-year-old daughter, Valentina Orellana-Peralta.
They had been hiding and praying in a dressing room as the attacker roamed the store and police came in. Now, Valentina is dead.
At this point, police are saying a bullet struck the floor and ricocheted into the wall, hitting the girl, but the investigation is still underway and is expected to take up to one year.
Warning – hard to watch!
Hearing the mother screaming while 14 year old Valentina Orellana-Peralta was shot and killed as they hid & prayed breaks my heart!
Sorry, the use of this force was NOT necessary! Taze the psycho! #LAPD #ValentinaOrellanaPeralta #Police #bodycam pic.twitter.com/cxgka8DI1q
— Dr. Rick (@Rick_LifeCoach) December 28, 2021
Condolences Aren’t Enough
The LAPD saying they’re sorry isn’t enough here.
As much as we support our men and women in law enforcement, there’s no evident reason why they had to open fire on a deranged man carrying nothing but a bike lock. So far in 2021, the LAPD has killed 18 people with their guns, after firing on 38 people.
That’s a lot of individuals. Now, LA is a violent and crime-ridden blue city, but these statistics are not good. The suspect in this case did have a history of violent crime and it’s reasonable police felt he could be a deadly danger to those around him.
However, opening fire in a crowded store with unknown areas behind the suspect is outrageous. This is exactly the kind of thing that leads to the tragedy we saw.
Part of supporting gun rights is being more judicious and exacting about when and why guns are used. As of all the information right now, this case doesn’t meet that standard for using a firearm in a crowded store.
LAPD recklessly shot into a crowded store, killing two people, including a 14-year-old girl. LAPD has now killed 17 people this year.
When will we hear from our elected leaders about LAPD’s horrific killings? https://t.co/wtdPqkMHCC
— 💜❤️Jane Nguyen (@theglowingstars) December 24, 2021
