LOS ANGELES (CNS) - The man who was fatally shot by police in Hollywood on Thursday while carrying a metallic butane lighter with a “pistol-like grip handle'' was homeless, authorities said today.
Matthew Sova was 48 years old, according to the Los Angeles County coroner's office.
The Los Angeles Police Department initially reported that the man now identified as Sova had a replica handgun, and under a new state law, the state Attorney General's Office is investigating the circumstances of the fatal police shooting.
It occurred around 11:20 a.m. Thursday in the 6700 block of Hollywood Boulevard, east of Highland Avenue. Officers say the department received a report of a man with a gun, and when they arrived, the man pointed the pistol-like lighter at officers.
An officer opened fire, striking the man, who was taken to a hospital and was pronounced dead shortly after, Police Chief Michel Moore told the Police Commission on Tuesday.
A female bystander who was a customer at a nearby store “may have been struck by one of the rounds'' and suffered a graze wound on her leg, Moore said.
“Our hearts go out to all those involved in this devastating incident,'' Attorney General Rob Bonta said Friday. “As required under AB 1506, the California Department of Justice immediately took action to initiate our investigation that will ultimately lead to an independent review of this police shooting.''
The law took effect on July 1. Bonta was a co-author of the legislation while serving in the Assembly.
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