Pasadena Police Chief Addresses Community in Wake of Friday’s Officer Involved Shooting

A day after the incident in which Pasadena police officers reported they pursued and shot a suspect who opened fire at them, Pasadena Chief of Police Phillip L. Sanchez thanked community members for their support of his department and explained how the investigation of the shooting will be handled in this exclusive interview with Pasadena Now Publisher James Macpherson.

In Friday’s incident, Pasadena police officers said they shot and critically wounded a suspect who fired several shots at them after he jumped out of a car the officers were pursuing down North Los Robles Avenue at about 9:15 a.m. Friday morning.

The suspect, a Hispanic man in his 20s, was transported in critical condition to a local hospital with unknown wounds, a Pasadena Fire Department spokesperson said Friday.

Sheriff’s Dept. Commander Cmdr. Rod Kusch said the suspect’s vehicle contained three occupants and was stopped because of suspicious activity.

As the car was being pursued by Pasadena police, a passenger jumped from the car and officers chased him by foot, Kusch said.

The man suspect was carrying a handgun and, Kusch said, he opened fire on the pursuing officers. The officers returned fire, striking the suspect in the upper torso area.

The officers were not injured, Kusch said. The other two suspects escaped.

A statement from the City of Pasadena said that per the Pasadena Police Department’s protocol, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is taking the lead to investigate this officer-involved shooting.