An officer who said “unstable” had suffered a medical emergency and died earlier Sunday, authorities said.
According to a department press release, a Fullerton policeman first spotted the man at 12:31 a.m. after closing at Lemon Park for several hours. Police said the man looked like he was holding a cooing cardboard box and was “unsteady.”
As more officers arrived, police said the man became uncooperative and began physically resisting. According to the department, more and more officials are being asked to provide assistance, and several of them need to control the person and put him in restraint.
Police said he “bited a violent bite of an officer and caused injuries when officers detained the man.”
The Fullerton Fire Department responded to the suspects and officers. Minutes later, according to the press release, the arrested appeared to have a medical emergency. Police said paramedics began taking lifesaving measures and took the man who had not been identified to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead.
The department said the bitten officer was treated and released at the hospital.
According to the police department, investigators from the Orange County District Attorney’s Office conducted an independent investigation into the death.
