(L.A.) Samuel Soto, 44, Died in a Hospital

Case Number: 2021-12097

Los Angeles County is reporting the death of a 44-year-old Hispanic male that occurred in a hospital.

The coroner’s office has identified the man as Samuel Soto.

Manner of Death: Homicide

Cause of Death: Sequelae of Multiple Gunshot Wounds

RIP SAMUEL SOTO (September 23, 1977 – November 2, 2021)

Formal pronouncement of death was made on Tuesday at 12:39 a.m.

The decedent was shot by LAPD on July 26. He died from his injuries five months later.

A man with a knife was shot by police. Then an LAPD helicopter made things worse.

Los Angeles Police Department officers responded to a call of a man with a knife acting erratically. One opened fire when the man came at them aggressively.

If it had ended there, the man probably would still be alive. But a police helicopter swooped noisily in, another patrol car arrived, and the chain of events that followed left the man lying on the ground with gunshot wounds that would eventually kill him.

The death of Samuel Soto — and the unavoidable realization that it likely could have been prevented — was a rare but stark reminder to LAPD officials that their heavy reliance on the department’s fleet of helicopters carries with it the potential for unintended tragedy.

Read the story in the L.A Times: https://archive.is/QumiH