Former Deputy Andrew Lyons Appears In Court For Deadly Shooting
DOWNTOWN (CBSLA) — On Friday, former Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputy Andrew Lyons, 37, made his first court appearance in relation to the 2019 shooting of Ryan Twyman.
At the time of the shooting, Lyons was on duty when he and a second deputy answered a call in Willowbrook. They encountered Twyman — who was under investigation in an illegal gun case — who was parked in a car. Twyman's vehicle then reversed towards the deputies. Both deputies fired at the vehicle, with their handguns, an estimated 34 times.
Lyons was then seen in a security camera video retrieving his semi-automatic rifle from the patrol unit. He continued to fire into the car even though it had stopped moving. Twyman died at the scene. The passenger was not hit by gunfire.
Twyman's family was surprised that the former deputy was charged in this case.
"None of us could have ever imagined that this could be the time that our struggle was validated — that the family's struggle was validated," said the family's attorney Brian Dunn.
The Sheriff's Department not only released the video central to the case but also fired Lyons late last year.
"That is accountability," said Sheriff Alex Villanueva
In January, the second deputy involved was suspended for 30 days.
"Very few of us believe that things can change," said Dunn. "I'm not quite ready to say that it is a sign of things to come and we've come over the hump but it is certainly a step in the right direction."
L.A. County paid the Twyman family nearly $4 million to settle the federal lawsuit.
Lyons is expected back in court on April 7th to enter his plea after posting a bond in the amount of $150,000.
