Los Angeles Police Department officer Houston Tipping, 32, was killed in May during a training exercise by cops he was investigating for sexual assault, according to his family’s attorney. The family is now suing the LAPD.
Tipping died during a bicycle training exercise, and his family is saying he was investigating another officer involved in the exercise for gang rape. Tipping had taken the incident report of the officer’s alleged sexual assault, Fox News reported.
During the training session, which focused on using bicycles for policing, Tipping was grievously injured, The Independent reported. The LAPD claimed he died during the training session while he was grappling with another attendee from an elevated height. According to the department, both men fell, but only Tipping suffered fatal injuries.
His family, however, is claiming he was beaten to death by colleagues for investigating a rape involving other police officer.
The alleged gang rape took place in July 2021.
Tipping’s family is now suing the police department for wrongful death.
“I’m certainly alleging that at least one officer engaged in an abuse of force in order to try and scare or harm Officer Tipping in order to prevent him from investigating a claim of rape,” attorney Bradley Gage said at a Oct. 3 press conference.
He continued, “The victim claimed that she was raped by four different people, all LAPD officers. She knew the names of some of those officers because they were in uniform and they had their name tags on.”
The Los Angeles County Coroner concluded that Tipping died from a spinal cord injury sustained during the training exercise and also that Tipping’s ribs were broken by a LUCAS device, which is an automatic CPR machine. Gage pointed out that there is no report or evidence he has seen to suggest a LUCAS device was ever used to try to resuscitate Tipping.
Los Angeles Police Department officer Houston Tipping (LAPD photo) / LAPD officers carry Houston R. Tipping’s casket at his memorial service, June 22, 2022. (Carolyn Cole/LA Times /AP)
