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The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputy who shot a man in the back in 2021 will not face criminal charges, according to records released later last month by the District Attorney’s Office.
When he shot Adrian Abelar at a Rosemead Auto Body Shop four years ago, Los Angeles County prosecutors discovered there was “inadequate evidence” to prove that Deputy Yen Liu was not acting in legal self-defense, and fired a round that was broken several spines and almost paralyzed, according to court and judicial records.
Abelar, 29, had just thrown a gun from his car and was down the pavement when Liu fired in point blank area. Deputies had responded to reports that Abelar, a convicted felon who failed to legally own a firearm, threatened to shoot several people at a car body shop.
However, when Liu and two other deputies arrived at the scene, they found him sitting calmly in his car. Deputies approach Abelar, who lied about the fact that he is on probation. Abelar says that if deputies found him with a gun, they feared that they would arrest him or kill him, so he decided to run away.
Abelar said he threw his weapon as soon as he got out of the car. In the video of the incident, deputies can be heard screaming “gun!” Just before Liu closes to Abelar, when Liu opens the fire, his right arm is clearly stretched and empty.
Eventually, the prosecutors decided that the reported threats made by Abelar and the fact that he owned a gun prevented them from prosecuting the lieutenant.
“One rational interpretation of the evidence leads to the conclusion that Liu acted in response to the obvious danger, so there is insufficient evidence to prove beyond the reasonable doubt that Liu did not act in self-defense when he shot Abelar behind him.”
Abelar’s case attracted new attention in the second half of 2023, a high-ranking member of Then-Dist. Atty. George Gascon’s administration was interested in the time the sheriff’s department was taking him to complete an investigation into the shooting. A LA County Inspector’s 2021 report shows that since 2013 there have only been four other cases since 2013 that have been more than two years between the shooting of asylum and the prosecutor’s claim decision. Such delays reduce the likelihood of prosecutors’ success, according to the report.
“DA’s office is bent backwards to claim they can’t prove a criminal offence… they prove they clearly don’t want it,” said Thomas Beck, Abelar’s civil attorney. He argued that the investigation “deliberately stalled for more than two years.”
Liu has returned to active duty and is assigned to Temple Station, where sheriff’s office spokeswoman Nicole Nishida said she was working at the time the shooting occurred. An internal review has been launched to determine whether Liu violated departmental policies, Nishida said.
Fauci’s usage expert, who reviewed footage of the incident, previously told The Times that Liu’s decision to film was a problem.
“The man clearly has no weapon in his hand, and the lieutenant above him draws his firearm, stuffs it onto the man’s back and fires it immediately after contacting him,” said Ed Obayashi, a lawyer and former Plemus County Sheriff’s Deputy.
Abelar’s lawyers challenged the allegations made by Artbody Shop owner Richard Doctor by claiming Abelar made threats and wielding a gun.
According to a recording released by law enforcement, Doctor said Abelar arrived at his shop that day asking for repairs to the car as he had fled the officers for an aggressive murder warrant. Doktor separately claimed with the Times in an interview that Abelar was threatening employees with guns.
According to the Sheriff’s Department, there was a warrant for Abelar’s arrest for a probation violation at the time of the shooting, but he was not required to commit a violent crime. Abelar has not been charged with a crime in connection with a case at a Doctor store.
Beck said the statement given to the sheriff’s department by other car store employees did not support Doktor’s claims. Neither the Sheriff’s Office nor the District Attorney’s Office responded to questions about the truthfulness of Doctor’s allegations. Doktor also criticizes the Sheriff’s Department’s response, claiming Abelar was “no threat” when Liu fired the gun.
Doktor did not respond to calls or text messages seeking comment this week.
Abelar’s civil lawsuit settled for $700,000 last year, Beck said. However, his client has not yet been paid and he cannot charge that money for a while.
Abelar fell homeless last year after the death of “the only relative of a living person,” Beck said. While living on the street, Abelar was suspected of being a felon with a firearm and ammunition last May, resisted arrest and forged his driver’s license, records show.
In February, he was sentenced to four years in state prison after he pleaded a dispute over a weapons charge and a stronger sentence due to a previous violent felony conviction, records show. Even with prison credits, Abelar won’t leave prison until 2028.
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