Teen Shot In The Back 5 Times By LA Deputies: Autopsy

LOS ANGELES, — Andres Guardado, an 18-year-old security guard killed by Los Angeles sheriff's deputies last month, was shot in the back five times, attorneys for his family announced Wednesday.

The family hired an independent forensic pathologist to conduct the autopsy. The official coroner's report is being withheld from the public by the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department for the sake of the ongoing investigation, according to Sheriff Alex Villanueva. The autopsy report offers one of the first glimpses into the teen's death, which triggered protests amid national unrest over police brutality. The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted to pursue an independent review of the investigation after Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas raised concerns about the integrity of the investigation in an extraordinary rebuke of the department. The Sheriff Civilian Oversight Commission and the Office of Inspector General also ascused Sheriff Alex Villanueva of stonewalling its investigation into the case.

"Andres was fatally shot five times in the back and suffered a graze abrasion to his left forearm with a forward trajectory," according to the statement released by Panish Shea & Boyle LLP. "Additionally, preliminary forensic toxicology results have confirmed that Andres did not have any drugs or alcohol in his system at the time of the incident."

Guardado was shot around 6 p.m. June 18 near the 400 block of West Redondo Beach Boulevard. Sheriff's officials have said two patrol deputies were at the scene when Guardado pulled out a handgun, then began running. Deputies chased him and caught up with him in an alley, and one deputy fired six shots.

Guardado was pronounced dead at the scene. Sheriff's officials said a weapon was discovered at the scene -- an unregistered .40-caliber semi- automatic pistol with a polymer frame and no serial number, a Smith & Wesson slide and a prohibited 15-round Glock magazine.

Relatives have said Guardado was working as an informal security guard for an auto body shop in the area, and was doing so when he was approached by the deputies.

The owner of the shop, Andrew Heney, told KCAL9 he could not understand why the young man was shot.

"We had security out front because we had certain issues with people tagging and stuff like that, and then the police come up and they pull their guns on him and he ran because he was scared and they shot and killed him," Heney said.

"He has a clean background and everything, there's no reason (for the shooting)."

The shooting occurred during a time of heightened tension between the community and law enforcement.

"An autopsy performed on Andres by the L.A. County Medical Examiner was immediately placed on a security hold by the Sheriff's Department, leaving his family without answers," Angela Bailey, director of public relations for Panish Shea & Boyle LLP, said in a statement Wednesday.

"At the family's request, a second autopsy was performed on Andres by an independent forensic pathologist which was completed on June 26, 2020," Bailey said.

The second autopsy was performed by "renowned independent Forensic Pathologist/Neuropathologist Dr. Bennet I. Omalu," the law firm's statement said.

"The Guardado family, and their attorneys, believe that the preliminary findings from the second autopsy prove that Andres' death was, without a doubt, the result of unjustified police violence against an innocent young man," the law firm's statement said.

``It has been 20 days since Andres was tragically gunned down by a Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputy," said attorney Nicholas Yoka. ``We are once again imploring the Sheriff's Department to step forward, release the Medical Examiner's autopsy report and do the right thing by this family."

Guardado's parents, Ciristobal and Elisa Guardado, released the following statement via the law firm:

``These findings confirm what we have known all along, which is that Andres was unjustifiably killed by a Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputy. Andres was a good boy, he was our son and he had so much life ahead of him. Our son did not deserve to die this way. We understand that there is still a long way to go, but we are going to continue to keep fighting for justice for Andres. We want to ensure that other families do not have to suffer as we have. We ask that the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department release their security hold on the autopsy report and all other evidence they have. We want answers. We would like to thank everyone for their support during these difficult times. Last weekend, in a ceremony surrounded by all the people that loved Andres, we laid Andres to rest. We will not rest, however, until Andres gets justice."

City News Service and Patch staffer Paige Austin contributed to this report.