Police Internal Affairs, D.A. & Review Board Probing South Side Incident
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Two entirely different police incidents are now under review by the Allegheny County District Attorney's Office, the Citizens Police Review Board and the Pittsburgh Police Department's Internal Affairs Division.
The first happened earlier this month in Larimer. Two officers were summoned to a house there after a woman called 911 asking for help. She was later found murdered in her apartment.
The second happened over the weekend after a police pursuit ended in a crash on Pittsburgh's South Side. A police-involved shooting then sent a driver and his mother to the hospital.
Sources told KDKA Investigator Marty Griffin that the 32-year-old driver, who was with his mother in the car, had gone to Homestead to buy crack cocaine. However, they left empty handed when they thought they were going to be robbed.
That's when the car went through a red light and police started pursuing it.
The pair has now been identified as 32-year-old Donald Burris Jr. and 49-year-old Lena Davenport, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. The newspaper also says the mother and son live together in Wilkinsburg.
The chase led to East Carson Street where the driver struck several cars. Police said they didn't find any drugs in the car when they searched it.
"There was a little panic, a lot of people didn't know what was going on, some people started to run. We saw a lot of police officers," said Zo Clark, a witness.
Mayor Luke Ravenstahl on Monday called the Carson Street shooting a horrific incident, one which he wished never happened.
"At the same time, our officers are trained to make sure they keep residents safe and at that moment, they felt that that was what they were doing," Mayor Ravenstahl added.
A total of five Pittsburgh police officers were involved in the shooting.
Sources say at least one was on-duty at the time. Another was one of the two officers who went to Ka'Sandra Wade's apartment on New Year's Eve night.
She had called 911 asking for help. The two officers left the apartment without speaking to Wade after a man came to a window and told the police that everything was okay.
Wade was later found shot to death, and police say the suspect in the case took his own life during a police standoff in North Point Breeze.
Both incidents are now being reviewed to see if proper procedures were followed.
Watch Ross Guidotti's Report:
The police involved in both incidents are now on administrative leave with pay.
The two people who were shot on the South Side, at last report, remain in serious condition. Neither has been identified.
Mayor Ravenstahl is expected to have more to say about the Carson Street shooting at a news conference on Tuesday.
RELATED LINKS:
D.A.'s Office Investigating Weekend Chase, Police-Involved Shooting (1/14/13)
More South Side News
Police, D.A., Citizens Review Board Launch Investigation Into Larimer Murder (1/7/13)
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