Police shootings mental illness cases are drawing renewed scrutiny in Southern California after another person with a known mental illness was fatally shot by officers, prompting calls for clearer rules on de-
escalation and the use of less-lethal weapons.
The latest shooting comes amid continued criticism over how law enforcement responds to people experiencing mental health crises. Experts say officers should follow a step-by-step approach that prioritizes communication and less-lethal options before resorting to deadly force when circumstances allow.
Similar concerns were raised after Yong Yang, a Korean American man experiencing a mental health crisis, was fatally shot by Los Angeles police in 2024.
According to the Los Angeles Police Department, officers responded around 10 a.m. Sept. 7 to the 600 block of Gillett Street in Boyle Heights after receiving a report of a man with a mental illness armed with a metal
pipe. Officers therefore knew before arriving that the call involved a person with a reported mental health condition.
When officers arrived, they first spoke with family members outside the home of Jimran Kanas, who had been experiencing mental illness.
While officers were gathering information from the family, Kanas emerged through the front door carrying what police described as an approximately 8-foot-long saw.
Officers ordered Kanas to drop the saw, according to LAPD.
Police said Kanas instead approached officers while pointing the saw toward them, prompting at least one officer to open fire.
Kanas was shot shortly after encountering the officers, without assistance from an unarmed crisis response team. He was transported to a hospital, where he later died.
Previous Mental Health Calls Also Ended in Fatal Shootings
The case is the latest in a series of police shootings mental illness advocates say underscore persistent concerns about law enforcement responses to mental health emergencies.
In May 2024, Yong Yang was experiencing symptoms of mental illness when his family sought assistance from the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health.
A county mental health worker subsequently called 911, bringing LAPD officers to the scene.
An officer assigned to LAPD’s Olympic Division ultimately shot and killed Yang. Police knew before the encounter that Yang was experiencing a mental health crisis, but an officer used a firearm rather than a less-lethal weapon.
Another fatal shooting occurred in Irvine in July involving a man in his 20s with a reported mental illness.
An Irvine unarmed response team, known as I-CARE, and the department’s Crisis Negotiation Team were at the scene. Police opened fire after the man allegedly charged toward officers with a bladed weapon. Less-lethal weapons were not used before the shooting.
Mental Health Experts Call for Clearer Rules
Psychiatrist Dr. Susan Jung said repeated fatal encounters point to shortcomings in police protocols and training.
“These incidents keep happening because police response guidelines aren’t clear enough and officers don’t receive sufficient training,” Jung said. “There should be a step-by-step process, including efforts to communicate and the use of less-lethal weapons, with firearms used only as a last resort when there is a direct threat to life.”
Dr. Man Chul Jo, president of the Korean American Psychiatric Association of Southern California, also questioned how quickly officers resort to firearms during encounters involving people with mental illness.
“There are too many cases where firearms are used first when police respond to people with mental illness,” Jo said. “When discipline or punishment following police shootings is rare or relatively minor, it can also make officers in the field more willing to make the decision to use a firearm.”
California Department of Justice records further illustrate how rarely police shootings result in criminal prosecution.
Of 41 police shootings involving civilians that the California Department of Justice closed over the past five years, none resulted in criminal charges.
The investigations also took an average of two years and five months to complete.
The repeated fatal encounters are intensifying calls for law enforcement agencies to establish clearer procedures for mental health emergencies — particularly when officers know before arriving that the person they are about to encounter is experiencing a mental healthcrisis.
