Daniel Perez left a farewell note for his family.
A 16-year-old boy who was shot by Los Angeles police last week had called 911 minutes before the incident and had left a farewell note for his family, said Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck on Thursday.
The police suspect that Daniel Perez who died on Sunday after an encounter with a police officer in the 4500 block of Ascot Avenue wanted to end his life through the police.
According to the police, on Sunday, October 2, 2016, around 4:00 p.m., Newton Area Gang Enforcement Detail officers had received a radio call of a “Man with Gun” in the area of 48th Street and Ascot Avenue. The comments of the radio call described a male dressed in a gray sweater and black pants, armed with a gun.
Responding to the call, officers reached the destination and found a male, who was later identified as 16-year-old Daniel Enrique Perez, matching the description provided in the radio call.
“The officer saw Perez was holding a handgun and yelled for Perez to drop the handgun. Perez continued to turn toward the officers and pointed a handgun at the officers; at which time the officer-involved shooting occurred,” said Los Angeles police in a statement.
The officers immediately requested Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics, who responded to the scene and transported Perez to a local hospital. Perez was pronounced deceased at the hospital.
The officers have recovered a cell phone carried by Perez which was used to call 911 about 20 minutes before the encounter. Beck said that one of the family members of the boy has confirmed his voice after listening to the call.
The family of Perez has also confirmed that the boy had “prior history,” leading to the conclusion that he had a desire to end his life.
However, Police Chief Charlie Beck declined to reveal more about the boy as he did not want to “put this family through any more trauma.”
“We believe this officer-involved shooting was a result of his desire to end his own life. Our heart goes out to his family as well as the officers involved in the shooting,” Beck added.
The handgun Perez had pointed at officers was recovered and was a replica handgun with the orange tip altered and colored black to match the handgun.
The police chief reviewed the body camera footage of the shooting and found the narrative of the officer matches the truth. However, the footage won’t be released.
The Ascot Avenue shooting came a day after 18-year-old Carnell Snell, Jr was killed in a police encounter.
Los Angeles had witnessed protests over the weekend in the wake of the shooting and several organizations including the Community Coalition, Black Lives Matter Los Angeles, Los Angeles Community Action Network, the Brotherhood Crusade and SEIU 721 sent an open letter to City Hall to “act with urgency to address the disproportionate use of lethal force against black and Latino residents.”