Murder Charge Against Ex-LAPD Officer Dismissed in 2015 Venice Beach Shooting
A Los Angeles judge dismissed the murder charge against former LAPD officer Clifford Proctor over the 2015 fatal shooting of homeless man Brendon Glenn. The DA's office says it will appeal.
Murder charge dropped against ex-LAPD officer in decade-long Brendon Glenn case
A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge has dismissed a murder charge against former Los Angeles Police Department officer Clifford Proctor, who was accused of fatally shooting homeless man Brendon Glenn, 29, near the Venice Beach boardwalk in May 2015, nbclosangeles.com reported Friday.
Judge Ronald S. Coen granted a defence motion to dismiss the case, finding that former special prosecutor Lawrence Middleton had failed to present the grand jury with exculpatory evidence. The judge also stated that, after reviewing video footage multiple times, he could not conclude that Proctor had acted with "malice of any sort."
"That's good enough to dismiss this matter," Coen said from the bench.
A decade of investigative reversals
The case had wound through the justice system for ten years, marked by repeated shifts in direction. In 2018, then-District Attorney Jackie Lacey's office declined to pursue charges against Proctor, citing insufficient evidence. At the time, an 83-page memorandum released by the DA's office noted that a nationally recognised use-of-force expert had concluded Proctor's actions were consistent with his having perceived a threat from Glenn.
Then-LAPD Chief Charlie Beck disagreed. Beck had recommended that Proctor be charged, after the department's own internal investigation determined he had shot Glenn twice in the stomach and once in the back.
In 2024, Lacey's successor, District Attorney George Gascon, filed murder charges against Proctor. Shortly after the indictment, Proctor fled the United States and is believed to have spent approximately a year in Trinidad. He returned to California in October 2025, flew into LAX, and was arrested on the murder charge.
DA vows appeal
Following the dismissal, Proctor's defence attorney, Tom Yu, said outside the downtown Los Angeles courtroom: "I'm grateful that the court did the right thing." Yu added that "any kind of suggestion that this was a murder indictment was nonsensical and not supported by the law."
The LA County District Attorney's Office, now led by Nathan Hochman, announced it would appeal the ruling. "We are surprised and disappointed by the judge's decision, whose erroneous ruling has thwarted our efforts to obtain justice for Brendon Glenn," Hochman said in a statement. "We will be appealing the court's ruling as we strongly believe there was more than sufficient evidence presented to the grand jury to show that Mr. Proctor was guilty of second-degree murder for maliciously killing an unarmed man," he added.
Former Chief Beck also weighed in, telling NBC Los Angeles exclusively: "I recommended filing manslaughter. Still do."
Background on the 2015 shooting
The original investigation into the May 5, 2015 shooting drew on officer body-camera footage, surveillance video, statements from ten civilian eyewitnesses, DNA analysis and expert testimony on use of force. According to the DA's memorandum released at the time, Glenn had 18 arrests, 12 convictions and seven pending cases, along with multiple bench warrants for failure to appear in court. Toxicological testing showed his blood contained both alcohol and marijuana at the time of his death.
The memorandum concluded that Glenn had been "given multiple opportunities to leave the location" but "chose to be confrontational and aggressive with civilians and the officers." It further noted that while Proctor's actions were found to violate LAPD policy, the administrative standard of proof differs from the criminal standard required for a conviction.
The city of Los Angeles previously paid $4 million to settle wrongful-death lawsuits filed by Glenn's relatives.
Source: Google News MT — Crime (en)