California cops fatally shot a double amputee on Thursday as he tried to evade arrest by getting out of his wheelchair and hopping away on, according to reports.
Officers fired roughly 10 rounds at Anthony Lowe Jr., a 36-year-old father of two whose family said lost his legs in another encounter with police in Texas.
The Huntington Park Police Department said they were called to the scene after Lowe stabbed someone without provocation.
After leaping out of his wheelchair, Lowe Jr. hopped down the street away from police, who initially tried to tase him.
Another police car arrived at the scene as Lowe — who was carrying a butcher’s knife — continued to flee.
A police officer who got out of the backup cruiser opened fire on Lowe Jr., who slumped over on his stomach and was handcuffed.
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He died at the scene.
The department said the officer fired at Lowe Jr. because he was afraid that he was going to throw the knife at him, according to reports.
“The suspect was tased at least twice by Huntington Park Officers but the deployment of the taser was ineffective,” according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office. “The suspect attempted to throw the butcher knife at the officers again, at which time an officer-involved shooting occurred.”
Lowe Jr.’s family members are questioning the use of force given his physical limitations.
“They murdered my son, in a wheelchair with no legs,” said his mother, Dorothy Lowe, at a Sunday press conference. “They do need to do something about it.”
The family told the Los Angeles Times that he had his legs amputated after a prior confrontation with police, but did not offer details.
Huntington Park cops do not wear bodycams, and officials said they don’t yet intend to release additional footage of the incident from nearby surveillance cameras.