LAPD identifies man shot dead with own gun struggling with officers; the video is still not public

Authorities identified the man who was shot with his own gun two weeks ago following a confrontation with Los Angeles police officers, but many details remain unknown and the LAPD has yet to release video of the incident. ‘incident.

Anton Hayes Byrd, 40, died May 12 after being stopped by a Los Angeles Police patrol car near the corner of 74th Street and South Central Avenue in Southeast Los Angeles, east of Highway 110.

Police said they were investigating a traffic violation around 11 p.m. that Friday when they arrested Byrd, whose home is listed as Livonia, Georgia, a suburb of Atlanta.

In an initial report on the incident, an LAPD spokesperson said officers spotted a gun inside Byrd’s car.

Another LAPD spokesperson, Capt. Kelly Muniz, added new information this week, saying Byrd “was asked to exit the vehicle. Before exiting the vehicle, he retrieved a handgun. The officer on the passenger side of the vehicle alerted his partner that he had observed a firearm.

When Byrd got out of the car, he was immediately confronted by the second officer, who was standing near the driver’s side door, Muniz said. When the officer attempted to restrain Byrd, he “attempted to escape the officer’s grasp by lunging forward,” according to an LAPD statement.

“During the brief struggle, the driver discharged his handgun and inflicted a single gunshot wound to his neck and immediately fell to the ground,” the statement continued.

Officers then moved the pistol – a 9mm semi-automatic – and handcuffed Byrd. They reported finding a worn casing near the loaded weapon.

The City of Los Angeles Fire Department said it received a call at 11:05 p.m., with a unit reaching the scene of the shooting at 11:11 p.m. Five minutes later, rescuers took Byrd to Dignity Health – California Hospital Medical Center in downtown Los Angeles, where he was reported dead.

The officers, whom the LAPD declined to identify, were not injured.

LAPD officials declined to release further details, including the nature of the traffic stop and whether Byrd pointed the gun at officers or himself.

Department policy requires critical incident videos to be released within 45 days. “Our goal is to get them out as quickly as possible,” Muniz said. “But with our limited staff and workload, it just doesn’t allow us to do it in just two, three or four days.”

The LAPD said the department’s Force Investigations Division is reviewing the incident.