North Hollywood Shootout - Aftermath and Controversy

Aftermath and Controversy

An inventory of the weapons used: An AR-15 converted to fire automatically with two 100-round Beta Magazines, a semiautomatic HK-91 rifle with several 30-round magazines, a Beretta 92FS Inox with several magazines, and three different AK-47 rifles converted to fire in fully automatic mode with several 75 to 100-round drum magazines, as well as 30 round box magazines. It is speculated that at least two of the AK-47s were later found to have been legally purchased by Phillips, and apparently converted by him as well using a bench drill to drill out the hole for the autosear pin (this allowed it to be fired in full auto). However, it was not possible for Phillips to legally purchase a firearm due to him being a convicted felon. The robbers were protected by body armor which could not be penetrated by the officers' handgun and shotgun ammunition.

The ineffectiveness of the pistol rounds and shotgun pellets in penetrating the robbers' body armor led to a trend in the United States toward arming selected police patrol officers with semi-automatic 5.56 mm AR-15 type rifles. Seven months after the incident, the Department of Defense gave 600 surplus M16s to the LAPD, which were issued to each patrol sergeant; other cities, such as Miami, also moved to supply patrol officers, not just SWAT teams, with heavier firepower. LAPD patrol vehicles now carry AR-15s as standard issue, with bullet-resistant Kevlar plating in their doors as well. Also as a result of this incident LAPD authorized its officers to carry .45 ACP caliber semiautomatic pistols as duty sidearms, specifically the Smith and Wesson Models 4506 and 4566. Prior to 1997, only LAPD SWAT officers were authorized to carry .45 ACP caliber pistols, specifically the Model 1911A1 .45 ACP semiautomatic pistol.

In this case, approximately 650 rounds were fired at two very heavily armored men, who had fired approximately 1,100 rounds. The responding police officers directed their fire at the "center of mass," or torsos, of Mătăsăreanu and Phillips. Each man was shot and penetrated by at least ten bullets, yet both continued to attack officers.

The LAPD did not allow Mătăsăreanu to receive medical attention, stating that ambulance personnel were following standard procedure in hostile situations by refusing to enter "the hot zone," as Mătăsăreanu was still considered to be dangerous. Some reports indicate that he was lying on the ground with no weapons for approximately an hour before ambulances arrived. A lawsuit on behalf of Mătăsăreanu's offspring was filed against members of the LAPD, claiming that Mătăsăreanu's civil rights had been violated and that he was allowed to bleed to death. The lawsuit was tried in United States District Court in February and March 2000, and ended in a mistrial with the jury deadlocked. The suit was later dropped when Mătăsăreanu's family agreed to dismiss the action with a waiver of malicious prosecution.

The year following the shootout, 19 officers of the LAPD received the departmental Medal of Valor for their actions, and met President Bill Clinton. In 2003, a film about the incident was produced, titled 44 Minutes: The North Hollywood Shoot-Out. In 2004, the Los Angeles Police Department Museum opened an exhibit featuring two life-size mannequins of Phillips and Mătăsăreanu fitted with the armor and clothing they wore and the weaponry they used.

The getaway vehicle and some of the LAPD patrol cars involved in the shootout are now on display at the Los Angeles Police Historical Society Museum in Highland Park.