Loved ones are protesting and calling for justice after a man was shot and killed by Los Angeles police officers during a traffic stop
Mario Sanchez, 35, was holding a cell phone when the deadly shooting occurred.
On March 14, police spotted a vehicle driving erratically on Imperial Highway, just east of Broadway, at around 10:20 p.m.
Officers pulled the car over and ordered Mario to lower his windows and place his hands outside the vehicle. That’s when Mario reportedly began yelling profanities at officers. Moments later, he stepped out of his vehicle and faced the officers.
He allegedly removed a dark object from his waistband area and quickly pointed it at them. That’s when police opened fire and shot Mario. He was transported to the hospital where he later died.
Investigators later confirmed the object Mario had pointed at police was a cell phone. He was reportedly driving home from work when the shooting occurred.
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Loved ones are calling for justice after Mario Sanchez was shot and killed by Los Angeles police officers during a traffic stop on March 14, 2025. (KTLA) -
Loved ones are calling for justice after Mario Sanchez was shot and killed by Los Angeles police officers during a traffic stop on March 14, 2025. (KTLA) -
Video showed the moment Mario Sanchez, 35, was fatally shot by Los Angeles Police Department officers during a traffic stop on March 14, 2025. (Coalition for Community Control Over the Police) -
Mario Sanchez, 35, was holding a cell phone when he was fatally shot by Los Angeles Police Department officers during a traffic stop on March 14, 2025. (Citizen) -
Loved ones are calling for justice after Mario Sanchez was shot and killed by Los Angeles police officers during a traffic stop on March 14, 2025. (KTLA) -
Loved ones are calling for justice after Mario Sanchez was shot and killed by Los Angeles police officers during a traffic stop on March 14, 2025. (KTLA) -
Video showed the moment Mario Sanchez, 35, was fatally shot by Los Angeles Police Department officers during a traffic stop on March 14, 2025. (Coalition for Community Control Over the Police) -
Loved ones are calling for justice after Mario Sanchez was shot and killed by Los Angeles police officers during a traffic stop on March 14, 2025. (KTLA)
On Friday, loved ones and community members gathered outside LAPD’s Southeast station calling for justice. They want criminal charges filed against the officers involved in Mario’s death.
“They shot him in the head,” said Mirca Sanchez, Mario’s sister. “They shot him all over his body — more than 30 times. This is not fair. We need the police to pay for what they did. I want them prosecuted.”
According to the L.A. County Medical Examiner”s website’s office, the primary cause of death was listed as a gunshot wound to the head.
“Can you imagine seeing someone gunned down on the ground, like an animal, and then picked up, handcuffed and thrown into a car after they’re not showing any vital signs?” said Alejandro Villalpando, an activist with Coalition for Community Control Over the Police. “That is what people report that they saw. That is unjust.”
Mario’s family said he was a father of two children who was weeks away from celebrating his 36th birthday.
“We will never be the same after this,” Mirca said. “They took our lives.”
The case remains under investigation by LAPD’s Force Investigation Division and the California Department of Justice.
