DA clears Anaheim officers in death of bipolar man after violent struggle

The Orange County District Attorney’s Office has cleared two Anaheim officers of wrongdoing in the death of a 38-year-old bipolar man who was involved in a violent struggle with police.

In a letter to Anaheim Police Chief Jorge Cisneros outlining the results of their investigation, DA officials wrote that officers Kenny Lee and Shiao Wang acted reasonably, and that Justin Perkins died as a result of “acute polydrug intoxication” due to the combined effects of two drugs.

Perkins’ family filed a lawsuit against the city of Anaheim and the Anaheim Police Department earlier this year, alleging that Perkins was beaten and choked to death by the officers.

Anaheim officials said the decision showed that the officers showed proper restraint during the struggle.

“While the loss of life in our city is tragic, this review provides the full detail and context of what our officers faced that day,” Anaheim city spokesman Mike Lyster said. “In responding to an assault call, they showed remarkable restraint and sustained serious injuries in an unprovoked attack. Our thoughts go out to them as well as a family that has lost a loved one.”

DeWitt Lacy, an attorney representing the family in their lawsuit, said he was “not one to ascribe some malicious intent” to the officers, but believed they failed to use proper protocol in deescalating an encounter with someone with “a very apparent mental deficiency.”

“They took it upon themselves to play the role of judge and adjudicator when it wasn’t necessary,” DeWitt said. “There was another side of the story, but they didn’t want to listen to that.”

According to the DA’s letter, officers Lee and Wang on the morning of Oct. 27, 2018 responded to an apartment complex in the 2200 block of West Broadway after a maintenance worker reported that Perkins punched him in the face.

Employees told the officers that Perkins often lived with his father and uncle in an apartment at the complex. Perkins answered the door when the officers knocked, according to the DA letter, but was acting strangely, appearing “to be talking to someone who was not there.”

According to the DA’s letter, Perkins attacked the two officers, “causing them to respond by using their fists, Tasers and batons, all to seemingly no avail until Perkins fell to the ground outside and was eventually subdued once Officer Wang was able to place him in a carotid restraint hold.”

Perkins bit off a portion of Lee’s pinkie finger during the fight, according to the DA’s letter, and Wang fractured a hand. Wang told DA investigators that it seemed as if Perkins had “superhuman power” and described the encounter as “the most scared he has been in his life.”

“What began as a misdemeanor assault investigation by the officers quickly turned into the officers fighting for their lives,” DA investigators wrote.

After the fight, other officers noticed that Perkins breathing began to change, and they were unable to find a pulse. Medics were called, as the officers performed CPR on Perkins, according to the DA’s letter.

Perkins was taken to an intensive care unit, where he remained in a coma before being pronounced dead on Oct. 31, 2018. An autopsy determined that he died from the combined effects of Methorphan and Bupropion, leading a doctor to rule the death accidental, according to the DA letter.

Perkins’ family has described him as a “gentle giant” who had the mental capacities of a 12-year-old. They have said there was “no indication he was involved in illegal activity,” and denied that he was high on drugs, saying he only used his prescribed medication.