Officials said a 15-year-old Apple Valley youth wielding a garden tool was shot and killed on Saturday by a San Bernardino County sheriff's deputy.
According to the statement, the boy, Ryan Gainer, chased the deputy in an attempt to assault him with the bladed end of a garden tool that was five feet long.
Gainer Shot Dead
On Saturday afternoon, the officer confronted Gainer after receiving a 911 call to a residence in the 13400 block of Iroquois Road. The teen allegedly was assaulting family members.
According to a sheriff's department statement released on Sunday, Gainer was transported by ambulance to a local hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries after being shot.
Police body camera footage released to Victor Valley News Group showed a young person leaping out of the house with a long object lifted toward the deputy as the officer approached the open door of the family home.
"Get back, get back, or you're going to get shot!" the deputy shouts as he moves quickly backward. The footage switches to a second officer, who is shown withdrawing while pointing his gun at Gainer with one arm lifted.
The deputy who fired on the boy remained anonymous.
The agency said the incident had been returned to its specialized investigations unit.
Gainer's Family, Lawyer Speak Out
DeWitt Lacy, a civil rights lawyer representing the family, said that there are great questions as to whether it was appropriate to use deadly force against a 15-year-old autistic kid who was having an episode. She said that they needed to see the video and the moment of the shooting but said it did not seem like anyone was in imminent danger of death or great bodily injury.
Lacy said that Gainer looked as though he had been shot three times, possibly in the abdomen and torso. He added that the footage showing the last seconds of the shooting and its aftermath worried him because they understand the gamesmanship that is involved when municipalities error and kill people needlessly.
According to the lawyer, the family also complained that after Gainer was shot, the deputies took their time to assist him. The sheriff's department's initial news release stated that officers quickly rendered medical aid before paramedics arrived.
However, he said that they had to give medical aid to Gainer they had just shot, and it certainly seems they failed to do that.
Furthermore, Lacy said the family also reported after the shooting, the family was forced out of the home. The family said that at the same time, officers rummaged through their house, looking for any justification for shooting and killing Gainer.
Lacy stated that Gainer's career goal was to become an engineer in addition to being a cross-country team member.
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