William Dorsey Jones Jr., LAPD Sheriff shot Valentina Orellana-Peralta at the Burlington Store, a wannabe reformer

Los Angeles policeman who shoot dead a 14-year-old girl as she tries on a Christmas costume has been identified as a veteran black cop who, before killing the unarmed teenager, was trying to build his brand as a community reformer and advocate.

He also launched a clothing line called “Using Force,” but dissolved it in December 2020, after months of protests against police violence across the United States.

William Dorsey Jones Jr., 42 years old, is identified by his attorney in New York Times. Attempts to contact him for comment this week have been unsuccessful.

Valentina Orellana-Peralta and her mother, who recently moved to the US from Chile, were in the dressing room when police stormed the Burlington Coat Factory in North Hollywood on December 23 to confront a man swinging bike lock on women, bloody at least one of them. That policeman opened fire even though the suspect was not armed quickly revive longstanding tensions between the LAPD and communities of color, as well as the nationwide police use of force debate.

Surveillance footage and body-cam video released by the LAPD showed an officer firing three shots from a rifle at suspect Daniel Elena-Lopez, 24. Elena-Lopez was killed, but a bullet also penetrated a dry wall, penetrating Valentine’s chest.

Soledad Peralta said at Tuesday’s press conference that her daughter had locked the locker room door during the commotion “to try to protect us”, and that the pair hugged and prayed until they “felt an explosion that threw us both.” the two of us on the ground.” Peralta looked down and saw her daughter convulsing, with white powder oozing out of her body. “She died in my arms, and there was nothing I could do,” she said.

Social media accounts, now locked or deleted, and previous interviews revealed that prior to the tragic incident, Jones was determined to position himself as a bridge between the police and the skin community. color.

“I am a black man, I am the father of a black son, I was once the food[im] racist,” he wrote in a tweet has now been deleted. “I am the LAPD. I have the power and determination to influence CHANGE in the community. I am a proud member of #thinblueline & #Black lives are worth it. ”

His cached post Twitter page disappeared shows he’s promoting a nonprofit, Officers for Change and related charities, while another The account is currently inaccessible said he coached a local high school soccer team.

He seems to have closed the Officers for Change Facebook and Twitter account, and was basically dismantled its website. But archived documents show that the organization is considered a “501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. with a mission to positively impact the lives of people living in low-risk and low-income communities” with “The Oath Platform to Educate, Inspire, Mentor and Motivate”.

The Kentucky native talks about his experiences and interests in a December 2020 article on his alma mater’s website, University of Louisville. “Being an African-American cop and coming from Louisville gave me a very unique perspective,” he said.

The article said Jones moved to LA in 2006 to pursue a career in entertainment but instead became a police officer, spending eight years on patrol duty and then three years as a community relations officer.

Public records also suggest he may have been looking for additional avenues to profit from his police career: Business information, trademarks, and the website The Daily Beast uncovered the Jones program launched a sportswear line in 2019 called “Use of Force Fitness”.

In recent days, Los Angeles City Councilman Mike Bonin has led a group of residents and activists calling for the LAPD’s use of force in the deadly incident to be unreasonable.

“The police do not give verbal orders and do not try [sic] de-escalation. The suspect did not have a gun and did not approach officers or potential victims. Police opened fire in a shopping mall with people in it,” he wrote on Twitter.

People outside the 911 call about Elena-Lopez gave conflicting information. One caller incorrectly said he was armed with a gun and fired.

Tom Saggau, a spokesman for the Los Angeles Police Protection League, the association that represents Jones, said officers were expecting an active shooting situation.

“You are trained to enter the facility and try to remove the threat so more people don’t get shot. That was the mindset when they responded to that call,” he told The Daily Beast.

He said Jones was “absolutely devastated” by the results.

However, Valentina’s family, represented by senior civil rights attorney Ben Crump, demanded accountability on Tuesday, and claimed officers left Valentina to die alone on the floor when they were being investigated. disperse others from the store.

In one second statement, LAPD Director Michel R. Moore said he was “deeply sorry” for her death and promised a “comprehensive, complete and transparent” investigation. The California Attorney General’s office and the California Department of Justice also launched separate probes.