Darrick Collins, 36

Los Angeles, California
September 14, 2009

Agencies: Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department California LASD

Cause of death: Not Yet Known


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Last updated: almost 6 years ago

Overview

Collins' death came amidst a rash of shootings by sheriff's deputies and sparked outrage in South L.A. communities. That led to policy changes at the sheriff's department, with Sheriff Lee Baca instructing deputies to try to contain potentially armed suspects and call backup instead of confronting them immediately. 

According to court records, deputies had been looking for two robbery suspects when they spotted Collins and a friend standing on the sidewalk a quarter mile from the robbery site. The two apparently matched the suspects' descriptions. When the deputies approached the men, Collins allegedly backed away, reached into his waistband and then ran.

One of the deputies said he saw a black object in Collins' hand as he passed through a fence gate and "positioned himself" on the other side of the fence. The deputy hit Collins with three shots. Collins was unarmed, holding a cell phone in his hand when he died. He also allegedly had a bag of ecstacy tablets in his pocket. Deputies determined he was not the robber they were looking for.

Collins' family sued the department, eventually agreeing to a settlement, which was approved Tuesday.

"I believe that amount of the settlement reflects that there are some things that occurred that night that could have been prevented," said attorney Brian Dunn, who represented the Collins family. "This was a shooting of an unarmed man and it was a shooting of a man who was simply running away from the deputy."

Legal Action

August 2012 Settlement $900,000