A former sheriff’s deputy involved in the fatal shooting of an unarmed man in Willowbrook in 2019 pleaded no contest to two assault charges Friday; the first conviction of a Los Angeles County law enforcement officer in a shooting in approximately two decades, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
Under the plea deal, Andrew Lyons is expected to serve 30 days in county jail and be placed on probation for two years.
He was taken into custody immediately after his appearance in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom.
Lyons, 39, pleaded no contest to one felony count each of assault with a semiautomatic firearm and assault under the color of authority. An involuntary manslaughter charge against Lyons was dropped as part of his plea agreement with prosecutors.
That charge could have landed him in state prison.
Lyons’ attorneys did not immediately respond early Friday afternoon to a request for comment.
According to prosecutors, Lyons and Deputy Christopher Muse fired more than 30 rounds into a car driven by 24-year-old Ryan Twyman the night of June 6, 2019. Lyons used a semi-automatic rifle to continue firing into the car after it stopped moving, according to the district attorney.
Muse, who had been struck by the car’s open door, was not charged.
The shooting sparked days of angry protests and attracted national attention. Twyman was a father of three.
“Today, justice has been served for Mr. Twyman’s family who have spent years mourning the loss of their loved one,” District Attorney George Gascón said in a statement. “This verdict reflects my office’s unwavering commitment to ensuring that every individual, regardless of their profession, is held accountable for their actions.”
The shooting happened after Lyons and Muse approached Twyman around 7:30 p.m. as he sat in his car with another person in an apartment complex parking lot near East 132nd Street and South San Pedro Street. The complex is in Willowbrook, an unincorporated area of L.A. County.
The county Sheriff's Department said deputies had been looking for Twyman after a search of his residence uncovered weapons. Twyman was on felony probation at the time of his death and prohibited from possessing firearms.
The deputies had received a tip that Twyman might be in the parking lot, according to the department.
A video released by the Sheriff’s Department shows Muse opening the right rear door of the car, a Kia Forte. At that point, Twyman starts backing the car up, striking Muse with the open door.
Both deputies open fire as the car continues in reverse away from them, and Lyons retrieves a rifle from his patrol car and continues shooting, according to the video. They fired a total of 34 rounds, killing Twyman.
The passenger was not hurt.
Gascón has charged 15 on-duty officers with crimes in connection with shootings or in-custody deaths. His two predecessors filed a total of two cases. The last law enforcement officer to be convicted of a crime in a shooting was in June 2000.
“Lyons is accused of … shooting into the vehicle after it stopped moving,” the District Attorney’s Office said when it filed the charges.
In January 2020, then-Sheriff Alex Villanueva said one deputy had been fired and another suspended for 30 days for killing Twyman. He did not specify which deputy was fired.
Twyman's family filed a wrongful death federal lawsuit against the county, which paid $3.9 million to settle the case in 2020.
