Anthony Lowe Jr. double amputee family demand justice after being shot and killed by Huntington Park police officers who claim the man had a knife and presented a danger to them after stabbing a man moments before.
Police overkill? A family is demanding justice after a group of California police officers shot and killed a double amputee as he tried to run away from them on his stumps after allegedly stabbing another man.
Three cops from Huntington Park Police Department were filmed firing at least eight shots at Anthony Lowe Jr., a 36-year-old father-of-two.
His family say he lost the lower halves of his legs recently after an altercation with police in Texas.
Lowe Jr. had just stabbed someone unprovoked, according to the police department, and was trying to run away from two officers on Thursday.
Responding cops tried to Tase him, chasing him as he ran down the sidewalk, away from a wheelchair he had momentarily leaped according to The LA Times.
Huntington Park, California police officers shoot dead Anthony Lowe Jr, a double amputee man who tried to run away from them on the stumps of his legs. The cops said they were afraid Lowe would throw the knife he had at them. pic.twitter.com/y4FjqED4Hy
— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) January 31, 2023
Were cops lives ever in real danger?
Bystander video showed Anthony Lowe Jr., holding what appears to be a butcher knife, trying to get away from police on what is left of his legs.
As Lowe attempts to get away on his stumps, a second police car arrives, from which a third cop emerged. Within 15 seconds of the third officer arriving, police fired multiple shots, shooting Lowe in the upper torso.
Upon hitting the ground, the double amputee was placed in handcuffs.
‘The suspect was tased at least twice by Huntington Park Officers but the deployment of the taser was ineffective.
‘The suspect attempted to throw the butcher knife at the officers again, at which time an officer involved shooting occurred,’ the LA County Sheriff’s Office release said.
Lowe Jr. later died at the scene. The man’s family along with activist group, The Coalition for Community Control Over the Police are now demanding the involved police officers face charges according to CBSNews.
The officers involved have not yet been named.
‘They murdered my son, in a wheelchair with no legs.’
Lt. Hugo Reynaga of the LA County Sheriff’s Office said the cops involved had been placed on leave ‘for a few days’ but that no official disciplinary action had been taken.
Lowe’s death comes at a time of increased scrutiny of police brutality and violence after a string of high-profile incidents, including the beating death of 29-year-old Tyre Nichols at the hands of no less than five Memphis Police Officers three weeks ago.
‘They murdered my son, in a wheelchair with no legs. They do need to do something about it,’ Anthony Lowe’s mother, Dorothy Lowe, said at a press conference on Sunday.
‘You guys knew your lives wasn’t in danger,’ said Lowe’s cousin, Ellakenyada Gorum. ‘He’s running on his limbs. How cold-hearted could they be?’
‘They refuse to give everything we need to know what really happened to him,’ Gorum, said. ‘He was not homeless, he was loved. And it’s sad, really sad, that they’re getting away from killing our African American people, just getting away with it. He was in a wheelchair. What more could he do? What more could he do?’
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s homicide unit is investigating Lowe’s shooting, as it typically does for all shootings involving Huntington Park Police Department officers, according to the unit’s Lt. Hugo Reynaga.
Activists are outraged at last weeks police shooting death of a 36-year-old double amputee. Along with family and friends they are demanded justice for Anthony Lowe Jr. @EmilyValdezKNX has the story.https://t.co/BJ8kSaYVpR
— KNX News 97.1 FM (@knxnews) January 31, 2023
Activists and family demand release of new video
Asked why it was necessary to shoot Lowe, Reynaga noted that the officers repeatedly tased him ‘to no effect’ before opening fire.
According to Lowe’s family, the double amputee lost the lower half of his legs following a different altercation with police in Texas recently.
He had been living with his mother as a result of the injury and undergoing mental counselling following the loss of his limbs.
On the day of his death, she says he’d told her he was going to McDonald’s.
It’s unclear who he is alleged to have stabbed, or what that person’s condition is now.
It is unclear if there’s any bodycam or dashcam video of Lowe’s shooting, but a nearby business has given authorities security footage of the shooting, CBS L.A. reported. To date, law enforcement hasn’t shared the video.
