Behind the Badge
Editor’s note: The video contains profanity and graphic images.
An Orange man that police describe as having an extensive criminal history was shot and killed by an Orange PD officer late Sunday night after he armed himself with a knife following a standoff during which he threatened to set himself on fire in a parked car.
The incident was caught on video by OnScene.TV. Below is an edited version.
Orange PD Sgt. Rob Thorsen said Monday the 33-year-old man died after being transported to a hospital, and that the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, per protocol, will investigate the office-involved shooting, which transpired after an officer attempted to make a traffic stop on a white GMC minivan around 11:15 p.m. March 12.
The officer attempted to pull the van over for having an inoperable taillight and the driver stopped in a strip mall in the 100 block of W. Katella Avenue after initially failing to yield, Thorsen said. An active arrest warrant was linked to the license plate, Thorsen said.
The shirtless man, who has yet to be publicly identified, barricaded himself inside the vehicle and produced a gas can and lighter and threatened to set himself on fire, Thorsen said. The OPD set up spikes to prevent the man from backing up the van, and a decision was made to use a fire hose to flush him out of the van and prevent him or the van from igniting, Thorsen said.
The dramatic OnScene.TV video shows officers using a hatchet and nightsticks to bash in windows of the van and the man crawling out of the driver’s window after being doused with water. The man then armed himself with a knife, Thorsen said, and refused to comply with officers’ demands. A “less-lethal” munition was fired but was not effective, Thorsen said.
The man then was struck in the upper torso by a single bullet, Thorsen said. An Orange PD officer rendered aid on the man and Orange Fire Department personnel did the same as the man was transported to the hospital. He was pronounced dead upon arrival.
The deceased man’s criminal history includes weapons and narcotics violations, Thorsen said.
The Orange PD may provide additional information about the OIS this afternoon, Monday, March 13. Check here for updates.
