The San Diego Police Department has released video footage of the fatal shooting of 41-year-old Huy Ly, which occurred near Fay Elementary School in City Heights last month. The video, which is edited body camera footage from the officers involved, captures the moments leading up to the shooting, including the encounter with Ly, who was later found to be holding a toy gun. The CBS 8 report explains that officers had responded to a 911 call from the elementary school, prompting their confrontation with Ly in an alleyway.
While attempting to subdue Ly, officers struggled to quickly establish communication, trying to discern if he could understand Vietnamese. The released footage indicates multiple tactics employed by the officers, including the deployment of bean bag rounds and a police canine. However, the canine was called off, and when Ly began to flee, the decision was made not to redeploy the dog but rather to give chase. Civil rights attorney Eugene Iredale, in an interview per CBS 8, questioned the actions taken by the police, stating, "They sent the canine, and then, for reasons that are not apparent from the video, called the canine back and then, when the man began to flee, instead of redeploying the canine, they simply chased the man, ultimately resulting in his death."
According to the Times of San Diego, the incident started with Ly sitting near the school auditorium and escalated quickly, despite officers' repeated commands to drop his weapons. The video showcases an officer warning Ly in English and then calling for the translation of the directive into Vietnamese. The subsequent advance by at least 10 officers followed unsuccessful attempts to resolve the situation with less lethal force safely.
The San Diego Police Department, in a social media post shared on Facebook, emphasized its commitment to transparency by releasing a video of the critical incident. The post details the shooting that took place on September 23, on 5100 Orange Avenue. However, attorney Iredale has raised concerns about the video's edited nature, contending that the true context of the events cannot be fully understood from the "highly, slickly edited" footage. "We'll never know just from a review of that limited sequence that's highly, slickly edited exactly why the dog was not redeployed during the course of the chase and whether this was really necessary," Iredale told CBS 8.
The California Department of Justice is reviewing the case to determine whether the use of deadly force was justified under state law. The requirement for the state department to intervene stems from a 2020 law mandating the California DOJ to investigate officer-involved shootings resulting in the death of an unarmed civilian. Despite initial reports from SDPD suggesting Ly was armed, it was later discovered that the gun was a replica and not a real firearm. The incident is currently under investigation by the California Department of Justice's special prosecution section.
