Following the shooting of two L.A. deputies that were ambushed by a gunman over the weekend in Compton, California, the Los Angeles County sheriff challenged Lakers superstar LeBron James to match the $175,000 reward money being offered for information on the shooting.
Sheriff Alex Villanueva explained his request.
“I want you to match that and double that reward,” Villanueva said. “I know you care about law enforcement. You expressed a very interesting statement about your perspective on race relations and on officer-involved shootings and the impact that it has on the African-American community. And I appreciated that.”
LeBron has not commented about the shooting nor the challenge, but journalist and podcast host Jemele Hill shared her thoughts on Villanueva’s unorthodox request on Twitter saying the sheriff “shouldn’t be using the cold-blooded murder of two officers to bully a celebrity and further a bad narrative that demanding police accountability means you sanction violence against the police.”
Villanueva expressed that he wanted James to step up and help the community.
“We need to appreciate that respect for life goes across professions, across races, creeds, and I’d like to see LeBron James step up to the plate and double that,” he continued.
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Both deputies were hit in the head and critically wounded after an unidentified man walked up to the passenger’s side of a parked police car in Compton, ambushing two deputies inside, firing multiple rounds.
They are expected to recover.
