LAPD officer under investigation after gunfire during altercation at house party

A Los Angeles police officer has been assigned home and had his police powers suspended after his gun discharged during a “physical altercation” at an early-morning party at the officer’s home in the Harbor Division this weekend, authorities said.

LAPD Chief Michel Moore told the L.A. Police Commission on Tuesday that, according to a preliminary investigation, the officer was off duty and hosting a party at his house early Saturday morning when he and one of his guests got into an altercation.

When the officer reached for his gun in a drawer, the gun fired one round, which “penetrated the drawer” and “lodged in an interior wall,” Moore said.

Asked for clarity by The Times as to whether the officer had fired the weapon, Moore said the ongoing investigation “will seek to determine how the gun was fired including the actions of the involved officer, condition of the weapon, etc.”

He said initial information indicated the discharge was unintentional.

The guest involved in the altercation left the location, and later reported the incident to the LAPD, Moore said. Internal affairs investigators are looking into the incident.

Moore said he had “significant concerns about the conduct of this officer.” He did not name the officer.