Tyler Damon Woods, 19

Long Beach, California
November 19, 2013

Agencies: Long Beach Police Department California

Cause of death: Shooting


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Last updated: almost 6 years ago

Overview

No weapon was found at the scene of the latest officer-involved shooting in the city that resulted in the death of a 19-year-old Rialto man, Long Beach police confirmed Thursday.

Tyler Damon Woods was shot and killed early Tuesday on the roof of an apartment building near 4th Street and Nebraska Avenue. Woods was wanted in connection with a carjacking in Los Angeles and was named in an arrest warrant that described him as an armed and dangerous felon, police said. He was also suspected of taking part in a recent armed robbery.

Authorities said officers shot Woods because they believed he was about to fire on them

Woods, of Rialto, was in a vehicle with several others and fled from officers after an early morning traffic stop, triggering a pursuit with search dogs and a helicopter, according to police.

Officers interviewed people in the vehicle and learned that Woods had a felony warrant for robbery and carjacking in Los Angeles, police officials said in a statement.

Woods was spotted on a third-floor balcony and then climbed to the roof of the apartment building in the 400 block of Nebraska Avenue.

"Once on the roof, the suspect took a kneeling position and began to turn towards [officers]," police said. "The officers discharged their weapons believing the suspect was about to fire on them."

Fire Department personnel pronounced Woods dead at the scene. Police did not say whether a weapon was found. The incident was the second fatal Long Beach police shooting in little more than a week.

 

In an email, Cynthia Arrona, spokeswoman for the Long Beach Police Department, wrote that a weapon was not recovered at the scene.

Legal Action

May 2014 Lawsuit filed

June 2016

A federal jury in Los Angeles has delivered a unanimous verdict against the two officers of the Long Beach Police Department (LBPD) who fatally shot Tyler Woods in a November 2013 incident, awarding Woods’ parents $1.05 million in damages, the lawyer representing Woods’ parents announced Wednesday.

The City of Long Beach also agreed to settle a lawsuit filed in conjunction with the one on trial, committing to pay $1.9 million to the son of Tyler Woods, who was an infant at the time Woods, 19, was killed.

The ruling and the settlement mean Woods’ family members will receive approximately $3 million total in damages.

Community and Family Efforts

November 2013 Vigil and various protests

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