Charges dropped against Torrance officers in killing of Black man who held air rifle

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Manslaughter charges were officially dismissed Thursday against two former Torrance police officers charged in the 2018 shooting death of Christopher Deandre Mitchell, a car theft suspect who was holding an air rifle at the time he was killed.Los Angeles County Dist.Atty.

Nathan Hochman announced his intention to drop the case, which was filed by his predecessor late last year.But Superior Court Judge Sam Ohta delayed a decision on the motion to dismiss due to a number of technical issues over the past six months, before finally ending the case against Matthew Concannon and Anthony Chavez on Thursday morning.

Concannon and Chavez were indicted in 2023 for killing Mitchell, 23, in 2018.Mitchell was sitting in his car in a supermarket with an air rifle between his knees at the time he was killed.

While Mitchell never pointed the weapon at either officer, Concannon told authorities he saw Mitchell reaching for what he believed was a real gun when he opened fire, according to court records.The case spanned three district attorney’s office administrations.

Then-Dist.Atty.

Jackie Lacey initially cleared the officers of wrongdoing, but Dist.Atty.

George Gascón reopened the case and assigned a special prosecutor to review her decision.A grand jury indicted both men in 2023.

Both officers were investigated amid a racist text-messaging scandal within the Torrance Police Department in 2021, where more than a dozen officers were found to have shared a litany of texts replete with antisemitic and homophobic slurs, promises of violence against Black suspects and jokes about use of excessive force.Concanon was ultimately found not to have sent any racist texts.

Chavez did send several messages, according to the district attorney’s office’s motion to dismiss the charges.Mitchell was Black, and activists have suggested the texts prove racial animus played a role in the case.In one ...