Police killed SoCal man with a 'less-lethal' round. Officer's use of force is ruled justified

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In the dark, early-morning hours outside a McDonald’s in Orange County, a police officer fired a shotgun loaded with so-called less-lethal munitions at a man swinging a belt, cursing at officers and believed to be under the influence of drugs, authorities said.One, two, three, then four shots of beanbag rounds were fired from a distance of around 30 feet, but the man did not comply with orders to get on the ground, according to a report released Thursday by the Orange County district attorney’s office.So, the officer fired a fifth shot.

It pierced the man’s chest, and he fell to the ground bleeding profusely.Less than an hour later, he was pronounced dead.Investigators at the district attorney’s office recently determined that Fullerton Police Cpl.

Nicholas Jarvis was justified in his use of force that killed Alejandro Campos Rios, 50, on March 6, 2024.“Corporal Jarvis’ deployment of the less-lethal bean bag shotgun at that distance was in accordance with his training and reasonable under the circumstances,” the report states.California The LAPD used 40-millimeter launchers — which fire foam projectiles at more than 200 mph — in at least nine cases that involved firearms last year, a report says.Less-lethal munitions such as beanbag rounds are designed to spread the force of impact over a larger area, without penetrating the skin, offering officers an alternative to bullets when defending against threats.

And as police departments’ use of force across the nation has come under greater scrutiny in recent years, the use of less-lethal munitions has grown considerably.“I can appreciate that there seems to be more less-lethal methods being used as opposed to just straight out shooting people,” said civil rights attorney Kellen Davis, who has prosecuted many use-of-force cases against police departments.

“But I think that force, period, should be a last r...