Jorge Alberto Jimenez, 31

Jorge Jimenez, a 31-year-old Latino, was fatally shot by law enforcement officers Monday, March 28, in the 1300 block of South Greenwood Avenue in Montebello, according to Los Angeles County coroner's records.

Montebello police shot and killed Jimenez, a kidnapping suspect, after authorities said he threatened his girlfriend with a gun and later pointed the firearm toward officers after a pursuit.

Authorities said the officers acted in defense of the public, themselves and a 3-year-old girl whom Jimenez allegedly had kidnapped. She was sitting in the back seat of his car during the confrontation with police.

Besides being armed, the sources familiar with the case said that Jimenez had been drinking and they thought he might engage officers.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, which is handling the investigating into the officer-involved shooting, said they believe the incident was "suicide by cop," in which a suspect challenges police in order to be fatally shot.

The incident unfolded about 12:30 p.m. when Montebello police responded to a domestic disturbance. Jimenez led them on a chase that lasted more than half an hour on a freeway and city streets.

Eventually, Jimenez stopped his car at Greenwood Avenue near Oakwood Street. During the incident, the suspect talked with his girlfriend, father and brother, who is a Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy.

At the end of the pursuit, Jimenez pulled his car into the middle of the street, where he was surrounded by police in  patrol cars. After some time on the phone, he got out of the driver's side door and appeared to take a couple of steps before stumbling.

He was holding a pistol, which he pointed in the direction of police and did not comply with repeated commands by Montebello officers. Authorities said he fired at least one shot, leading to the volley of return gunfire by police.

Immediately after the shooting, a woman later identified as the suspect's girlfriend, ran into the car and grabbed her 3-year-old daughter from the back seat of the vehicle. The little girl was unhurt.

-- Andrew Blankstein