A veteran Los Angeles police officer involved in a controversial shooting more than a decade ago opened fire last week on a group of robbery suspects after one allegedly brandished a gun, according to police.
In the afternoon of Aug. 6, Det. Jeff Nolte and his partner, Det. Donald Walthers, who both have worked as LAPD officers for about 20 years, were tracking a group of people suspected in a series of recent robberies in South Los Angeles. The pair were assigned to the department's elite Special Investigation Section.
Nolte and Walthers pulled over the suspects' car in the 900 block of East 49th Street after the group robbed another store, police said. The officers opened fire when Marquis Walker, an 18-year-old sitting in the back seat, pointed a gun in their direction, according to a news release issued by the Los Angeles Police Department. Walker was unharmed, but the three others in the car were all shot. Jessie Long, another 18-year-old man, was killed, while the female driver and another passenger were wounded. The number of times the officers fired and other details remain under investigation.
As is standard when officers are involved in shootings, Nolte and Walthers have been removed from field duty pending the outcome of an initial review of the incident by police command staff, Deputy Chief Charlie Beck said. The review is scheduled for today.