By Stefanie Dazio
Associated Press
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Black Lives Matter protesters say the husband of the Los Angeles County district attorney pointed a gun at them before sunrise Monday as they demanded a meeting with her at her home.
Authorities have not confirmed the activists' account regarding the events at the home of District Attorney Jackie Lacey. In a video posted by Black Lives Matter organizer Melina Abdullah, a man pointing a gun opens the door and says: "Get off. Get off of my porch."
The encounter came a day before a primary for district attorney; Lacey is seeking a third term.
Lacey, the first black woman to lead the country's largest local prosecutor's office, has clashed repeatedly with Black Lives Matter protesters. They say she is too protective of law enforcement and doesn't prosecute officers who fatally shoot suspects.
Abdullah told KTTV the protesters rang Lacey's doorbell to meet with her.
"Her husband met us at the door with a gun," Abdullah told KTTV. "We heard him cock it, he pointed the gun as he opened the door and then when he saw me, he pointed the gun directly at my chest."
The Los Angeles Police Department confirmed that officers were called to a Granada Hills home around 5:40 a.m. regarding about 50 protesters outside a home, Officer Lizeth Lomeli said.
Lomeli said there have not been any arrests but police did not immediately confirm the report of a man brandishing a gun.
In the video, a woman off-camera says: "Good morning. Are you going to shoot me?"
The man, identified by Cannick as David Lacey, says: "I will shoot you. Get off of my porch."
The woman responds: "Can you tell Jackie Lacey that we're here?"
The man says: "I don't care who you are, get off of my porch right now. We're calling the police right now."
Lacey, a two-term incumbent, is facing George Gascon, the former San Francisco DA, and former public defender Rachel Rossi. The race is nonpartisan and will be decided if one of the candidates receives more than half the primary votes on Tuesday. If no one achieves a majority, the top two will face off in November.
Rossi, whose spokeswoman Jasmyne Cannick also posted the video on Twitter, criticized Lacey's reluctance to meet with the protesters.
"As District Attorney, I will never run from the community," Rossi said in a statement Monday.
Published: Tue, Mar 03, 2020
