With a city commission set to decide on whether to take disciplinary action against five police officers involved in the death of a man who was repeatedly Tasered during a confrontation in Venice, local Black Lives Matter leaders called today for justice on behalf of his family.
The Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners is set to evaluate, in closed session, the actions of the five officers who responded to a Jan. 3 traffic stop in Venice, where Keenan Anderson, a Washington, D.C. teacher, was Tasered multiple times by officers. Anderson later died from the effects of an enlarged heart and cocaine use, according to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner.
"What's clear is Keenan Anderson was never anything more than a passive resistor. What's clear is that a less than lethal weaponry like a Taser, when used in the wrong hands, is indeed lethal," Carl Douglas, an attorney for Anderson's family, told commissioners during the panel's public comment period.
"So I turn to you, commissioners, because by your actions in that room, you will have the chance to make a statement. A statement that all of the people of Los Angeles will be listening to," Douglas added. "A statement that says we will hold our officers responsible when they do wrong."
Chris Anderson, Keenan's younger brother, gave short remarks to the commission. Chris recognized that Keenan "wasn't perfect to some.''