Comparisons to Michael Brown Local civil rights leaders and some on
social media drew comparisons between Ford and the
shooting of Michael Brown in
Ferguson, Missouri two days previously.
Investigations, autopsy and LAPD response Initial response Both officers were placed on paid leave. LAPD officials named Wampler and Villegas on August 28. Wampler's name had been leaked the previous day by blogger
Jasmyne Cannick. In December 2014 a department spokesman said both officers had been reassigned to administrative duties. Smith said the hold was due to the risk that the autopsy's findings would affect witnesses' testimonies, but Hutchinson said it would fuel "suspicions about the LAPD's version of the Ford killing." In October 2014 the South Central Neighborhood Council passed a resolution calling on
Los Angeles City Council member
Curren Price to direct the LAPD to release Ford's autopsy report. A spokesman said the LAPD was reluctant to release information that could adversely affect ongoing investigations, and that the department had seen little success in finding witnesses. On November 13 Garcetti said the report would be made public by the end of 2014. The autopsy was released on December 29. It showed Ford was shot three times, in the back, side and right arm. The gunshot wound in his back bore a "muzzle imprint" suggesting the shot was fired at very close range. It also noted multiple abrasions to Ford's hand and arm. Experts consulted by the
Los Angeles Times said none of the autopsy's findings were unexpected or contradicted the officers' accounts.
Beck investigation Beck concluded in a report that Wampler and Villegas had been justified in their actions. His investigation found that Wampler had grounds to reasonably suspect that Ford had been in possession of drugs. In November 2014 Beck, District Attorney
Jackie Lacey and Price called on witnesses to come forward. On December 4 Beck said no new witnesses had been identified. Beck and Bustamante reiterated in December 2014 and January 2015 that the department had encountered difficulties in finding witnesses, and that witnesses whose names were provided by the Ford family's attorney had been uncooperative. Soboroff responded the same day that the Board had received several recommendations but had yet to make a decision. On June 9, 2015 the Board's ruling stated that Villegas was justified in the shooting, but Wampler violated Ford's civil rights by detaining him. Its findings will be sent to the LAPD's internal affairs group, and after a few months, will be forwarded to Beck, who will determine if he will discipline the officers involved. Any possible criminal charges will be determined by Lacey. Speaking after the Board's ruling, Beck downplayed the disagreement between its report and his own, and said the result was the outcome of a system of
checks and balances. Beck also released a video message in which he told LAPD officers, "You have my support. You have the support of the mayor. You have the support of the vast majority of the people of Los Angeles." Soboroff questioned Beck's failure to also mention the Board of Police Commissioners, which he described as "hurtful but ... untrue." Beck said it was not his intention to suggest that the Board did not support officers. Craig Lally, the president of the LAPPL, criticized the ruling, and claimed the Board had dealt with the officers severely to prevent civil unrest. Lally also described Ford as a "known gang member". Garcetti commented on the Board of Police Commissioner's report on June 13, 2015. He said "I think it's so important for law enforcement officers to know that they are supported," and emphasized the need "to strengthen the bonds between community and between police." Garcetti also met with Tribotia Ford, and told reporters "It was a really beautiful meeting between the two of us, I think". Ford said she was grateful to the mayor but the meeting had come "10 months late."
Disciplinary process and long-term response In June 2015 Beck criticized confidentiality laws, which he argued prevented him from making public the disciplinary measures to be placed on Wampler and Villegas, and called for "greater leeway for the police department to make not only the decisions known, but the rationale behind the decision." He said that these confidentiality requirements prevented him from discussing what measures would be taken against Wampler, or what form they could take.
Protests and community response August 2014 On the morning of August 13 a group of men gathered at a makeshift memorial featuring candles and sign reading "police brutality must stop". Protesters marched with their hands raised and chanted Ford's name. After the protest many demonstrators went to the scene of the shooting. On August 15, Paysinger favorably compared the Los Angeles' community's reaction to Ford's death to the reaction to Brown's death in Missouri, and attributed the absence of violence to "the confidence the public has in the police department to conduct an immediate, a thorough, a thoughtful investigation". Paysinger added that the LAPD does "a much better job reaching out to the community" than it had done previously. Price said "Los Angeles is not Ferguson. Much work has gone into changing the culture of our police department. Our progress is evidenced this evening by the presence of our chief of police and his command staff." Ceebo the Rapper, a cousin of Ford, said "There was never any intent [in the song] to threaten any police or nothing. But I guess that's how they want to take it". Another protest occurred on August 17, in response to Ford's death as well as that of Brown. Several hundred protesters marched to LAPD headquarters, where several speeches were made, and then to
Union Station,
La Placita, through
Little Tokyo and
Chinatown to
City Hall. Protesters carried signs carrying the names of Ford and Brown; others wore
Guy Fawkes masks. and for the names of the officers to be released. Speakers also demanded increased civilian oversight of the police and mandatory
body cameras. including members of Ford's family. After attending the meeting Paysinger said "You think you're in a good place, but then you find yourself at that meeting ... It was patently clear to me that we need to get busy." Paysinger also commented that two decades previously such a meeting would not have taken place and said he "found great satisfaction, at least in some way, that people came. They had an ability to voice their dissatisfaction with the LAPD because I think somewhere deep down, they do believe that something is going to happen." Around 100 people took part in another protest on August 21. Ford's funeral was held on August 30 at the
First African Methodist Episcopal Church of Los Angeles. County supervisor
Mark Ridley-Thomas, Price, U.S. Representative
Maxine Waters and former U.S. Representative
Diane Watson spoke at the service. Speakers linked Ford's death to other encounters between officers and unarmed African-American men, including the shooting of Michael Brown. That evening protesters briefly blocked traffic on the
110 Freeway. In December 2014 a group of activists including Hutchinson announced the
Ezell Ford Police Conflict Reduction Plan, calling for mandatory body cameras, a review of deadly force policies, retraining on mental health issues, a conflict mediation task force, and for referring all officer-involved shootings to criminal prosecutors. Another demonstration took place on January 3, 2015, organised by the Coalition for Community Control Over the Police, with around 50 participants. In late December 2014 and early January 2015 protesters camped outside LAPD headquarters. On January 5 they were forced to leave, with two arrests made after participants tried to pass barricades to deliver their demands to Beck. The following day demonstrators attended the weekly meeting of the Los Angeles Board of Commissioners, demanding greater transparency and civilian control over the LAPD. Later in January protesters continued to gather daily outside LAPD headquarters, demanding that Wampler and Villegas be terminated and that Lacey file charges against the officers. An activist interviewed by
ColorLines said LAPD officers had used "intimidation tactics" against the encampment. Prior to the Board of Commissioners' announcement of its findings in June 2015 a
protest camp was established outside Garcetti's home. Later in June a small group of protesters gathered in response to reports that Beck and Bustamante would find that Wampler and Villegas were justified in shooting Ford. After the ruling community activists called on Lacey to file criminal charges against Wampler. She also said she was "kind of surprised" by the decision. Ford's family held a memorial service for Ford at
Inglewood Park Cemetery on August 8, 2015. Protesters disrupted a meeting of the Board of Police Commissioners on August 11, the first anniversary of Ford's death. Protesters shouted at a woman who spoke in support of police officers, and held photographs of Ford. An LAPD lieutenant declared an unlawful assembly, and demonstrators delivered written demands that Beck, Wampler and Villegas attend a "people's tribunal". No arrests were made and the demonstration continued outside LAPD headquarters.
Legal proceedings In September 2014, Ford's family members filed a federal
wrongful-death lawsuit against the LAPD. In March 2015, Ford's parents filed a second wrongful-death lawsuit in state court, alleging that Wampler and Villegas intentionally or negligently shot Ford and that Wampler and Villegas violated Ford's constitutional rights. The suit also alleged that the LAPD had a longstanding practice of violating civil rights, and that Wampler and Villegas were motivated by Ford's race and their "prejudice, disdain and contempt for African Americans or persons of black skin tone." The City of Los Angeles settled this lawsuit in October 2016 for $1.5 million. In January 2017 Los Angeles County prosecutors said Wampler and Villegas would not face criminal charges in connection with the shooting.
Popular culture Ezell Ford was included in a list of Black Americans killed during interactions with police at the conclusion of
Two Distant Strangers, a 2020 short film highlighting the issue of deaths of Black Americans by police officers. ==See also==