LOS ANGELES (KNX) - A week after the Los Angeles Police Department announced a 10-day suspension for one of the bomb squad members responsible for the 2021 fireworks blast that destroyed a South L.A. neighborhood, the affected community is calling for tougher discipline.
More than 20 community members rallied in front of LAPD headquarters yesterday to protest the light punishment, KNX News’ Pete Demetriou reports.
Ron Gochez from Unión del Barrio called the 10-day unpaid suspension “a slap in the face to every single family that continues to be affected by that explosion.” He said every police officer involved in the explosion should be immediately fired, and even face criminal charges.
“They should be in prison for criminal negligence. Because if any one of us set off a bomb that caused that much explosion anywhere, we would be in prison,” Gochez said.
The explosion occurred on June 30, 2021, after LAPD officers attempted to detonate approximately 5,000 pounds of seized fireworks inside a “total containment vessel” on a residential South L.A. street. The officers severely miscalculated the weight of the explosives and ignored warnings from an expert bomb technician that the cache should be broken up into smaller groups before detonation.
The resulting explosion destroyed 22 homes and sent 17 people to the hospital. Two neighborhood residents died within weeks of the blast.
The community is also upset about the slow pace of financial compensation for homes and personal possessions that were lost in the blast.
The LAPD didn’t comment on the protesters’ demands, but said five other officers are in the disciplinary process, and several have appealed their penalties to a board of rights. No information will be released on any penalties until those appeals are completed.
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