WEST HOLLYWOOD—On July 30, the Los Angeles Police Department Force Investigations Division announced that an Officer Involved Shooting (OIS) occurred with the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team in the West Los Angeles Division.
On July 29, the Los Angeles Police Department (LASD) and the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) responded to a call of a burglary in process in the 2600 block of South Halm Avenue.
According to the LAPD, officers responded first to a caller whose home was broken into. The suspect, later identified as Lavell Adams, broke into the caller’s home. The caller was an elderly female, and a window was broken while the suspect was entering the home prompting the victim to flee. Her home was later set on fire.
When LAFD officers responded to the fire, they observed LAPD officers attempting to take the suspect into custody. The suspect was armed with a knife. Police initially shot off rounds from a bean bag gun.
The suspect who was still armed with a butcher knife then barricaded himself in the home. Members of the S.W.A.T. team entered the area at this time. One officer had a taser on the ready when the suspect lunged toward them with a knife. Shots were simultaneously fired along with the taser, and the suspect dropped to the floor, and the knife fell out of his hand.
LAPD officers declared Adams dead at the scene. The full text of the press release may be found here.
According to the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (LASD) Inmate locator, the suspect has a criminal history. He was arrested for a felony on July 21, 2022, and was released on bond on October 18, 2023.
On March 1, 2023, Adams was arrested for a felony. He was initially to be detained until assigned to permanent housing on April 17, 2023. He was placed on probation at his sentencing court date on March 29, 2023.
The suspect was listed under two separate names including Lavell Diontay Adams and
Lavell Diontay Adams.
