A former Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy will stand trial over his 2019 fatal shooting of an unarmed man in a car outside a Willowbrook apartment.
Andrew Lyons, 38, is charged with one felony count of voluntary manslaughter and two felony counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm in the June 16, 2019 shooting death of 24-year-old Ryan Twyman. Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón announced Friday that Lyons would stand trial over the killing.
“I am obviously very encouraged by the outcome of today’s proceeding,” Gascón said in a written statement. “This has been a very long painful journey for the Twyman family. They have waited far too long for some semblance of justice. I know we are not quite there yet but we are definitely moving in the right direction.”
Lyons had pleaded not guilty last May. He waived his right Friday to a hearing in which a judge would have been asked to determine if there was sufficient evidence to allow the case against him to proceed to trial.
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Defense attorney Nicole Castronovo argued before the hearing was set to start that the prosecution had violated its duty to immediately disclose interview notes from the deputy medical examiner regarding the cause of Twyman's death.
“The cause of death is at issue in this case – according to the prosecution, two different deputies fired four fatal rounds at Mr. Twyman – with only one charged for the shooting. As such – if the other shooter fired the fatal shots the prosecution asserts were lawful – and Mr. Lyons' shots struck Twyman after he was already deceased – there is no voluntary manslaughter or assault as to Twyman,” Lyons' attorney wrote in her court filing.
Superior Court Judge Eleanor J. Hunter said the hearing would proceed, prompting Lyons' attorney to ask for time to speak with her client. After a brief discussion, she announced that Lyons had opted to waive his right to a preliminary hearing in which evidence would have been presented.
When the judge asked if he gave up his right to have the hearing, Lyons responded, “I do, your honor.”
The case is due back in the downtown Los Angeles courtroom for arraignment Feb. 28.
Lyons was with another deputy when they approached a car in a parking lot outside the apartment in Willowbrook, about 10 miles south of downtown Los Angeles. At the time, Tyman had been named in an arrest warrant.
Security camera video showed the car backing up after the other deputy opened a rear passenger door. Both deputies opened fire after Twyman put the car in reverse, according to the District Attorney's Office.
The car came to a stop nearby, and Lyons retrieved his semiautomatic assault rifle and shot into the vehicle after it stopped moving, according to the DA’s office.
Twyman was struck by bullets in the neck and upper body. He died dead at the scene.
The other deputy was suspended for 30 days, then-Sheriff Alex Villanueva said. In 2020, the county paid Twyman's family $3.9 million to resolve a federal lawsuit stemming from the shooting.
Lyons' attorney has called the prosecution a political move by Gascón in an effort to make him appear tough on alleged offenses by law enforcement officers.
The DA’s office said Friday that under Gascón, the office has filed more officer-involved shooting cases against on-duty officers than the previous two administrations combined.
