Jaywalker Who Was Fatally Shot by Officer Is Identified

An unarmed jaywalker shot dead in West Covina over the weekend when police mistakenly thought he was reaching for a gun was identified on Sunday as 18-year-old Dwight Stiggins of Los Angeles, sheriff’s officials said.

No further information was available Sunday about the shooting or about Stiggins, who ran Saturday morning when a still-unidentified West Covina police officer stopped him for jaywalking.

Stiggins, who authorities said was reaching into his waistband after a chase, was found only to be carrying cookies, some papers and a Bible when he was shot in the 400 block of Mangate Avenue, in the unincorporated Los Angeles County area of Valinda.

The West Covina Police Department referred calls to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, which is investigating the shooting.

The incident began at 9:30 a.m. Saturday when the West Covina officer saw Stiggins jaywalk across Azusa Avenue at Temple Avenue. When the officer attempted to advise him of the violation, the man ran, said Sheriff’s Deputy Michael Irving.

After a chase, Stiggins was cornered and forced to the ground on Mangate Avenue. Then, as other police officers converged on the scene, he broke away and ran, bending over and reaching in the front of his pants, authorities said.

The officer fired, hitting the man in the torso. He was taken to Queen of the Valley Hospital in West Covina, where he was pronounced dead.