Man killed by LA police had been shot by officers before
Authorities say a man who was shot and killed by Los Angeles officers over the weekend had been previously shot by police in Rhode Island in 2018
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A man who was shot and killed by Los Angeles officers over the weekend had been previously shot by police in Rhode Island in 2018, authorities said.
The Los Angeles County coroner identified the man as 34-year-old Richard Solitro. His autopsy was listed as pending Monday afternoon.
Solitro was wearing body armor Saturday when he confronted police officers in Hollywood police said.
The altercation initially began when Solitro cut off a police vehicle as the officers responded to another call with the car's lights and sirens turned on. Solitro — driving a black sedan that had words and phrases written on it, such as “King Satan 666” — hit his brakes and backed into the car and got out, holding his right hand behind his back.
"The officers gave him commands which he did not follow, and he started counting down, saying 3… 2… 1… as he started to pull his hand from his back to the front,” Detective Meghan Aguilar told reporters.
At least one officer opened fire, killing Solitro. He was pronounced dead at the scene; no weapons were recovered.
In 2018, Solitro was shot by an officer in North Providence, Rhode Island, according to The Providence Journal. Officers had responded to his home because a relative was concerned he might harm himself.
Solitro was shot after pointing a replica gun at an officer, the newspaper reported.
A Providence grand jury in 2019 determined the shooting was legally justified, the Los Angeles Times reported, and Solitro in September pleaded no contest to felony assault by use of a device similar in appearance to a firearm.
LAPD Capt. Stacy Spell told the Times that the person killed in the Hollywood shooting was the man who had been shot in Rhode Island.