Parminder Singh Shergill was shot dead outside his house.
By Deepak Chitnis
WASHINGTON, DC: A Sikh man in California was killed by police officers after an altercation at the man’s home, although reports are conflicting as to whether or not the police were actually in the right to shoot the man in the first place.
Parminder Singh Shergill, 43, was killed on the morning of Saturday, January 25 around 9 A.M., at his home on Elderica Way in Lodi, California. Police were called to the house by neighbors who said they heard a dispute coming from the residence. Two police officers – a 22-year and a 15-year veteran – responded to the call.
Shergill came to his front yard to meet the police, wielding a knife. He was allegedly told to put down the knife, which he did not. Police then say that Shergill charged at the officers, which prompted them to shoot since charging with a knife is a lethal action. Shergill was then pronounced dead a short time later.
However, neighbors and other local eyewitnesses are saying Shergill never lunged at the officers, and showed no sign of having any intention to charge at them. While they admit that Shergill ignored repeated instructions from the officers to put down his knife, he did not look like he was ever going to make a move at them, calling into question whether or not the officers had the grounds to shoot him.
Per police protocol, the two officers were placed on three-day, paid administrative leave, which is given to all officers who shoot and kill someone on the job. The Lodi Police Department has kept mum on the type of knife that Shergill allegedly had and the number of shots that were fired in order to bring Shergill down. They also have not released the names of the officers in question.
Now, the District Attorney’s office, the Lodi Police Department, and the Department of Justice are all investigating the incident. Lodi is known for being a fairly quiet community with almost no violent crime at all. The last time a Lodi police officer was involved in a shooting was in 2009, which itself was the first since 2005.
Shergill was a native of Jagatpur, India, and came to the US in 1970 when he was around five years old. He graduated from Lodi High School in 1989 and immediately joined the US Army, where he stayed until 1995, when he was honorably discharged.
He then attended San Joaquin Delta College, earning an associate’s degree, and then went to the University of the Pacific for a year to study biochemistry. He ended up leaving, and eventually ended up at California State Institute in Sacramento, from which he graduated in 2001 with a degree in biochemistry and electrical engineering.