LOS ANGELES -- The Police Commission said Tuesday an LAPD officer was justified in killing a Guatemalan immigrant last year -- a shooting that sparked days of protest in the Latino community.
Commissioners approved an internal LAPD report that concluded the Sept. 5 killing of Manuel Jaminez was a proper use of force.
Police said the 37-year-old day laborer had a knife and lunged toward the officer after refusing orders in Spanish and English to drop the weapon. Several witnesses also told police that they saw a drunken Martinez with the knife.
Activists and immigrants who didn't believe the police version of events held three days of violent protests.
Police were mobilizing for more expected protests.
Several witnesses told police they saw a drunken Jaminez holding a knife, but some in the community did not believe the police account. At least one woman who saw the shooting said Jaminez was not holding a weapon.
The fatal shooting sparked successive nights of street protests.
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