A San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department deputy shot and killed an unarmed person after a traffic stop in Adelanto early Tuesday morning, and the California Department of Justice is investigating the incident, the Sheriff's Department said.
The shooting began with a traffic stop near Highway 395 and Cactus Road at 2:41 a.m., the SBCSD said in a news release, and at some point, a foot pursuit began.
The driver of the car, whose name, age and gender have not been released, died after a "lethal force encounter," the Sheriff's Department said, though the office of California Attorney General Rob Bonta later confirmed that it was a shooting.
"Preliminary investigation revealed the suspect was unarmed," the Sheriff's Department added.
The events that led up to the foot chase and shooting have not been released, nor has the identity of the deputy, though the AG's office said the state DOJ is investigating the shooting.
"Once the investigation has been completed, it will be turned over to the California Department of Justice’s Special Prosecutions Section within the Criminal Law Division for independent review," the office said.