A transient shot dead after he allegedly approached Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies with a raised stick was identified by the coroner's office today.
Deputies encountered Darrell Atkinson, 49, at 3:45 p.m. on Oct. 6 at the intersection of Venice Boulevard and Cadillac Avenue, according to Deputy Mark Pope of the Sheriff's Headquarters Bureau.
"Investigators have learned that deputies from the Transit Services Bureau came in contact with a man believed to be a transient. The suspect suddenly armed himself with a wooden stick," Pope said.
"He advanced toward the deputies with the wooden stick overhead. A deputy-involved shooting occurred and the suspect was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead."
Civil rights activist Earl Ofari Hutchinson questioned whether "a stick was a lethal weapon."
Sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore told City News Service "all our
investigations are thorough and done as quickly as can be without sacrificing the thoroughness of the investigation."
"Don't forget the District Attorney's Office, the Office of Independent Review, Internal Affairs as well as the Homicide Bureau respond to the scene," he added. "That's true with every single investigation and this one is no different."
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Whitmore said a stick "can be a lethal weapon," but said he isn't saying that was the situation in this case.
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