A new report reveals a startling increase in fatal shootings by law enforcement in Los Angeles County. According to the study, 54 people were killed by police in 2011, a nearly 70 percent increase from the previous year. Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck says the department’s shootings were nearly all justified and the result of quicker response time from officers. But many residents of hard-hit South Central Los Angeles take issue with law enforcement’s response to its use of deadly force.
Pacifica KPFK’s Ernesto Arce files this report from South Central Los Angeles.