Terron Jammal Boone, The man in the gunfight, has the same mother as Fuller, was named in a criminal complaint filed Tuesday that charged him with assault with a deadly weapon, false imprisonment, domestic violence and criminal threats, according to LA Superior Court records.
Boone was identified by Fuller’s family attorney, Jamon Hicks, who said Boone was killed by deputies during the shooting.
“At this time, until we receive all of the information, the family and their legal team doesn’t have any further comment on this incident. The family respectfully asks that their privacy be respected,” Hicks said in a statement released to reporters.
The sheriff’s department said deputies from a specialized unit had been involved in a shooting after 4:30 p.m. on 15th Street West but offered little additional information.
A second person was injured during the exchange of gunfire.
The sources said several days ago a woman called 911 and said she had been held against her will by Boone in an apartment, where he allegedly demanded information about Fuller’s death. The woman escaped and reported the incident to the sheriff’s department, which resulted in the criminal charges filed Tuesday.
Fuller, 24, was found after 3:00 a.m. a week ago in Poncitlan Square across from Palmdale City Hall with a rope around his neck. The sheriff’s department and LA County Coroner initially classified the case as an apparent suicide, but agreed to a more thorough investigation after family members and protesters demanded information.
Fuller’s family hired an attorney and said it would seek an independent autopsy.
“To rush to the conclusion that this was a suicide and not a homicide is extremely disturbing. Especially given the manner by which Mr. Fuller was found — hanging from a tree,” said Fuller family attorney Jamon Hicks. “For African-Americans in America, hanging from a tree is a lynching. Why was this cavalierly dismissed as a suicide and not investigated as a murder?”
On Monday, Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva vowed to conduct a thorough investigation into the death — with cooperation from state and federal law enforcement.
It is in our interest to make sure that we leave no rock unturned,” Villanueva said, promising full access to outside investigators. “This death investigation obviously is of great concern to the community, not only of Palmdale, but throughout the nation. Robert Fuller was a young man in the prime of his life, and his death obviously is painful for many people.”
Hundreds of residents have taken part in vigils and protests in the days since, many condemning what they saw as a rush to judgment to proclaim Fuller’s death a suicide without examining the possibility of foul play. Some deemed his death a lynching.
Medical Examiner-Coroner Dr. Jonathan Lucas told reporters Monday an autopsy was conducted Friday, but the cause of death has been deferred pending further investigation and toxicology tests. He said the initial report was that the death was consistent with a suicide and there were no signs of foul play.
“Initially there wasn’t any evidence that lead us to believe there was anything other than a suicide,” Lucas said.
However, Lucas felt a deeper look was warranted and promised that no finding as to the cause of death would be made until all of the evidence is in hand.
