New Details in Halloween Shooting

L O S  A N G E L E S, Dec. 5 -- The actor killed by a police officerresponding to a noise complaint at a Halloween party was shot oncein the back of the head and three times in the back, according toan autopsy report. Those wounds appear to contradict policeaccounts.

Police said Anthony Dwain Lee was killed Oct. 28 at a HollywoodHills mansion after pointing a fake handgun at an officer. Leeturned suddenly toward an officer who was shining a flashlight fromthe other side of a glass door, police said.

The coroner’s report, released Monday and signed by DeputyMedical Examiner Jeffrey P. Gutstadt, found that Lee had beenstruck from behind by four bullets. Two in the back caused hisdeath as they tore through vital organs.

TV, Film Appearances

Lee, 39, had appeared on TV shows such as ER and NYPDBlue, and had a small role in the 1997 Jim Carrey movie LiarLiar. He had turned from gangs years ago and become a committedBuddhist.

Los Angeles Police Officers Tarriel Hopper and Natalie Humpheryswere dispatched to investigate a noise complaint at the mansionshortly after midnight. A security guard hired for the party metthe officers in an entry area and asked them to wait while he foundone of the hosts, but Hopper, 27, went outside.

The officer made his way along a narrow outdoor walkway andshined his flashlight through a glass door into a back bedroomwhere Lee was chatting with two other men.

9 Shots Fired

Hopper fired when Lee allegedly reached into his waistband,pulled out what appeared to be a .357 Magnum semiautomatic handgunand waved it in his direction, police said. The gun was a rubberreplica.

Nine shots were fired, according to police.

“He could not have withdrawn a gun from his waist and pointed agun at the officer and then have been shot four times in the back.It’s impossible,” said Cameron Stewart, an attorney with the lawfirm of Johnnie L. Cochran Jr., who was retained by Lee’s family.

Stewart said she will file a claim with the city of Los Angeles,the first step in a wrongful-death action. She said she hopes cityofficials “will recognize the tragedy that has occurred and willstep up to the plate and do the right thing.”