LONG BEACH, Calif. (CNS) - Authorities Tuesday chased a car that was reported stolen in Long Beach, fatally shot the driver, and arrested the passenger in an incident that mostly unfolded on live TV.
The chase began about 6:10 a.m. and went over surface streets and then onto the Long Beach (710) Freeway, the Artesia (91) Freeway, the Glenn Anderson (105) Freeway, and the San Gabriel River (605) Freeway.
The motorist ran red lights and sped around cars, nearly overturning at one point. Eventually, the chase led to the city of Bellflower, where the car went into a business parking lot near Foster Road and Bellflower Boulevard and was boxed in by police about 6:40 a.m.
At that point, shots were fired by law enforcement officers, and the passenger got out and surrendered. A short time later, officers pulled the wounded driver from the car and began administering CPR on him, but he died at the scene. His name was withheld, pending notification of relatives.
In a briefing for reporters near the shooting scene, Long Beach police Sgt. Brad Johnson described the circumstances that would lead an officer to open fire.
"When it gets into threat of your own life, someone else's life, or imminent threat," Johnson said. "I don't have details on how many shots were fired, but I can say that multiple officers fired."
According to police, a handgun was thrown from the car at one point along the chase route, and the weapon was recovered by authorities.
