Jul 9, 2008 10:03 am US/Pacific
Widow Alleges LAPD Shooting Was Racially-Motivated
LOS ANGELES (CBS) ―
The widow of a Woodland Hills man killed in an officer-involved shooting in Hyde Park in March has filed a wrongful death suit against the city of Los Angeles and four LAPD officers, alleging he was shot because he was black.
Laura Michelle Cox, the widow of Maurice LeRoy Cox, filed the suit Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court. She also is alleging civil rights violations, battery and negligence, and is seeking unspecified damages.
An LAPD spokeswoman declined to comment on the lawsuit.
According to police, the incident occurred about 7:30 p.m. March 1 near the intersection of Crenshaw Boulevard and Slauson Avenue when officers saw a gray pickup truck speeding south on Crenshaw Boulevard, then crash into a palm tree.
As officers approached the truck, Cox, while reaching for the glove compartment, told officers to move away or he would kill them, according to police.
A perimeter was set up along Slauson Avenue, while Cox remained barricaded inside his truck, but Cox left his truck and pointed an object appearing to be a weapon at Officer Jose Campos, police said.
Campos fired and Cox ran from his truck, allegedly continuing to point the object at pursuing officers from the northeast corner of Slauson Avenue.
More shots were fired, then Cox ran into a bank parking lot, where he was shot and wounded by other officers, police said.
Cox was taken by paramedics to California Hospital, where he later died.
Police said a cigarette lighter power adapter was recovered at the scene.
According to the lawsuit, Cox was dazed and incoherent after the crash of his truck and that is why he did not come out of it for 15 to 20 minutes.
When Cox did leave the truck, he did not try to run and did not make any threatening gestures toward the officers, the suit states.
(© 2008 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)
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