Police Chief to Report 24% Decrease In Use-of-Force Incidents In 2020

At the Pasadena City Council’s Public Safety Committee meeting Tuesday, the Police Department is expected to report a 24% decrease in use-of-force incidents in 2020.

According to the statistics, police used force in just 26 incidents in the 12-month period. Other key figures, including the total number of arrests, were not immediately available prior to the meeting.

In 2019, Pasadena police officers used force 34 times, according to police statistics. During that time period, police were also involved in three officer-involved shootings.

“In 2020, we saw another year of decline in the use of force by officers during incidents involving uncooperative individuals. This decline can be attributed to the implementation of the Police Department’s 30-day review process of all incidents involving force and using what is learned in these reviews to improve ‘real-life’ skills during immersive training sessions,” said Lt. William Grisafe.

Pasadena police officers were involved in two officer-involved shooting deaths in 2020.

On Aug. 15, a Pasadena police officer fatally shot Anthony McClain on North Raymond Avenue near La Pintoresca Park after McClain fled during a traffic stop. McClain’s DNA was later found on a gun recovered at the scene, according to police. The incident is still under investigation.

On May 8, police shot and killed Lloyd Nelson after the former Marine opened fire on police at the conclusion of a pursuit. Nelson fired two shots at officers through the windshield of the Mitsubishi sedan he was driving.

Nelson had three weapons in the vehicle — one in the center console, one tucked between the passenger seat and the console, and the one that he used to fire at officers. None of the weapons were registered to him. He also had 400 rounds of ammunition in the car.

Non-police officer-involved criminal shootings in Pasadena rose in the fourth quarter of 2020.

Overall, the city saw 59 non-fatal shootings and four fatal shooting incidents in 2020.

One occurred on Dec. 1. Two men were killed and a third man was critically wounded during what appeared to be a random shooting at Villa Parke.

In a shooting death in September, Ray Anthony Magee Jr., 24, of Duarte was killed while sitting in a car on North Lake Avenue, near East Howard Street, when he was shot. Two men fled the area in a 2017 Dodge Charger with tinted windows. According to police, the last two digits of the license plate number were “50.”

According to Grisafe, it’s difficult for police to pinpoint the exact number of shooting victims. Police answered several calls of shots fired and found evidence of shootings, but possible victims had already left the scene.

Pasadena police recovered 288 firearms in 2020, a 27% increase from the number of weapons seized in 2019.

“When compared to the number of arrests the Pasadena Police Department makes every year, officers used force in only .5% of these arrests,” Grisafe said.

The meeting begins at 4 p.m. and can be viewed at http://pasadena.granicus.com/mediaplayer.php?camera_id=2&publish_id=9