Mayor Bass Issues Statement in Response to LAPD’s Release of Officer-Involved Shooting and In-Custody Videos, Will Issue an Executive Directive Regarding LAPD’s Response to[...]

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LOS ANGELES - Mayor Karen Bass today issued the following statement:

"These two videos were incredibly difficult to watch. People who experience behavioral or mental health crises often do not receive the proper care they desperately need. Without it, they can deteriorate into behavior that can result in severe injury or death.

"Decades of disinvestment in community-based mental and behavioral health services have left too many Angelenos without access to timely and appropriate care, increasing the likelihood that people in crisis will come into contact with law enforcement. LAPD officers do not enter the force to become first responders to mental health crises and are not equipped with the proper training to do so.

"The tragic deaths of Jose Carlos Hoyos-Munoz and Alejandro Luis Garcia show what can happen when someone in a behavioral health crisis does not get the care they need, and law enforcement is called upon to respond. Mr. Hoyos-Munoz died in custody while he appears to be experiencing a mental health crisis. Similarly, Mr. Garcia lost his life in an officer-involved shooting while he also appeared to be experiencing a mental health crisis.

"The reality is, until society provides the proper care for individuals with mental health disorders, law enforcement will continue to be called upon to respond, especially when those individuals exhibit violent behavior. When an encounter results in death or serious injury, we must rigorously examine whether our policies, training, tactics, supervision, and accountability systems are sufficient.

"Therefore, I will be issuing an Executive Directive calling for an independent evaluation of officer-involved deaths and severe injuries, with particular attention to injuries and deaths that might involve individuals experiencing a mental health crisis. This independent review will aim to identify systemic gaps, strengthen policies and training, and enhance public and officer safety. It will also examine what type of mental health support officers should receive following a critical incident.

"We must also expand civilian crisis response and co-response models that can support individuals in crisis who have not exhibited violent behavior, reducing the need for armed officers. Public safety cannot be achieved through law enforcement alone."