17 Officers Cleared in 5 Deaths, 5 Injuries

The Los Angeles County district attorney’s office cleared 17 law enforcement officers of blame Thursday in four fatal shootings, one in-custody death and five nonfatal shootings that were ruled self-defense.

In one case, a 15-year-old boy was left paralyzed. In another, an 85-year-old man died after being shot, but the death was attributed to natural causes rather than his gunshot wounds. The findings in 10 separate reports were issued by the Special Investigations Division, which routinely issues such reports on officer-involved violence. The shootings dated from 1987 to 1991.

Twelve of the 17 officers whose cases were reviewed were with the Los Angeles Police Department, which has come under scrutiny in recent months because of the videotaped beating of motorist Rodney G. King. Perhaps the most controversial of the 10 reports concerned a 1987 case in which a mentally disturbed man died of head injuries and an inflamed heart after battling with Long Beach officers who took him into custody.