Shocking video appears to show CHP officer shoot man repeatedly on 105 Freeway

Disturbing video recorded by a bystander appears to show a California Highway Patrol officer shoot a man repeatedly after a struggle in the middle of the 105 Freeway in Watts on Sunday afternoon.

The CHP confirmed Monday that a shooting took place on the freeway, but did not provide basic information, including the medical status of the man who was shot, whom authorities have not identified.

CHP officials said they responded to the freeway about 3:15 p.m. after receiving multiple calls about a man walking through traffic near the Wilmington Avenue exit.

After contacting the pedestrian, “a struggle ensued and an officer-involved shooting occurred,” the CHP said in a release. Authorities said over a police radio that the man had a Taser and fired it at the officer, leading to the shooting, according to audio posted on the Citizen mobile app.

The CHP directed all inquiries to the California Department of Justice, which investigates police shootings when the person is killed and was unarmed, according to the department.

The state DOJ did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The video begins with a CHP officer on top of another person as the two struggle on the pavement in the middle of what appears to be a closed stretch of freeway.

After a few seconds, while the two tussle, a gun seems to go off and a bullet ricochets off the pavement near the body of the man, who remains on the ground.

The CHP officer then stands up and shoots at least four additional times at the prone man, the video shows.

The man lies motionless for the rest of the minute-long video. The CHP officer remains by the body with his gun drawn.

Travis Norton, a law enforcement officer who runs the California Assn. of Tactical Officers After Action Review, said video is a limited way to understand a police shooting.

“It is hard to diagnose without knowing what the officer saw, experienced and interpreted was happening,” Norton said. “All I see is a very short scuffle. I see the suspect point something that appears to look like some sort of weapon. … From the video, without knowing anything else about it, the use of deadly force appears appropriate.”